Dragon's Strike, Angel's Touch
by Bleeding Wings
Summary: T.K., the Angel of Death, has been assigned to kill a popular singer named Kari Kamiya. However, T.K.'s heart tells him otherwise. This is a tale of love, betrayal, sorrow and SERIOUS gunplay! Have fun!
1. The Dragon Spreads Its Wings

**Disclaimer**  
  
I don't own Digimon. (duh!) The only character I created goes by the name Shard. However, the dark world I put the DigiDestined and the Tamers in and the roles I changed for them strictly belong to me.   
  
I want to thank one of the best techno groups to ever exist: DAFT PUNK! If it weren't for their incredible story-like song, "Something About Us," this story would never have been possible to create. I recommend you get their CD, "DISCOVERY." That CD can tell you tales you've never imagined before. May anime forever live on...  
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Title: DRAGON'S STRIKE, ANGEL'S TOUCH  
  
Author: Bleeding Wings  
  
Genre: Action, Romance, Angst, Supernatural  
  
Rating: "R" For violence, adult language, adult situations, and sexual content  
  
Summary: A top assassin named T.K. Takaishi must assassinate a lovely musician named Kari Kamiya, the younger sister of a powerful Yakuza warlord. Whether he chooses to kill her or to love her doesn't matter; either way, T.K. will go through a whole world of hurt as a result. Buckle your seatbelts and get ready for a wild ride filled with love, tragedy, and eye-popping action like never before on fanfiction.net.   
  
Welcome to MY world....  
  
  
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As the night was growing older and the moon was still shining the dark skies, it was time for Davis to close the Mt. Fuji Pub. Knowing that the good times couldn't last forever, all his customers nicely left the pub and headed back home. A bit bushed by the busy night he had, Davis put the "Closed" sign and locked the door. He got back to the bar and began to clean up the mess his customers left. Since there wasn't that much to clean up, he sent all his employees home early rather than make them help him keep the Pub in top shape.  
  
"Man, what a night. It's too bad this night couldn't last a few hours more. I was really enjoying that karaoke performance that purple-haired girl was singing. I bet that behind those pair of glasses, she's a major cutie. It's a good thing none of the Kamiya Clansmen came to cause any trouble for the boss, Matt Ishida," Davis said to himself, cleaning a mug with a clean cloth.   
  
As he turned to his left to put the empty mug back into a rack, he noticed someone consumed by the shadows in a corner. The shadowed one stood there with coolness as he put his hands in his pockets. Davis knew immediately that anyone that lurks in the shadows is after one of the two things: your loyalty to his boss, or your life. Feeling his pulse beating hard against his throat, he whipped to his side and snatched his shotgun from underneath the bar. With great speed, he aimed his shotgun right at the shadowed one's heart.  
  
"Who the hell are you? You tell your boss that this place only belongs to the Ishida! Tell Mr. Kamiya that he's never gonna take this place, even if I have to shed blood!" Davis shouted nervously. Davis' finger lightly trembled on the trigger as he tried to aim squarely at the shadow. The shadowed one slowly began to come out of the darkness.  
  
"Davis... is that a way to treat an old friend?" As the newcomer came out of the shadow, he turned out to be a young, blonde-haired man around Davis' age. He wore a black trenchcoat over his black attire, and his Rayban sunglasses suited him very well. His facial expression was as cold as pure ice, showing that he wanted to have nothing to do with anything that's pure and kind-hearted. Finally, that stone-face of his cracked a smile.   
  
Davis knew who he was immediately. He was one of the greatest assassins to ever live. He never failed to take out his targets, and he was a true master at the art of the grim reaper. Through reputation, he was the Angel of Death. But to Davis, he was his best friend in the whole world.  
  
"T.K.!! Good to see ya, man!" Davis put down the shotgun and gave him a big hug. T.K. gave him just as much of a big hug, along with a good pat on the back. T.K. sat in one of the chairs in front of the bar while Davis prepared to serve his friend a drink.  
  
"Man, it's been 3 months since I last saw ya! Looks like nobody can top you, right?" Davis asked, remembering how good T.K. really is in his profession.  
  
"I'm lucky to still be alive, Davis. I had to take out some druglord in Colombia for not meeting the demands of the Yakuza. That was one tough bastard to kill," T.K. said softly. Davis just couldn't believe what T.K. just said.  
  
"What do you mean 'tough'? I've seen you in action, man! Remember when you went one-on-one with that samurai master named Cody? When he was hired to assassinate me, you picked up a sword and went all out on him. Son of a bitch, you beat that guy with ease! Sometimes, you're too damn modest," Davis said. T.K. snorted and turned to the side.  
  
"Hey, T.K. What would you like to have?"  
  
"I'll have some milk, 2% Low Fat, please."  
  
"That's T.K. for ya. You haven't changed a bit."  
  
Davis poured him a large glass of milk and handed it to T.K. T.K. slowly drank half of it down, drinking it as though it was only thing in the world that could quench his thirst.  
  
"Uh... T.K.? I got a call from Mr. Matt Ishida... your brother-"  
  
T.K. slammed the glass on the bar and gave Davis eyes of daggers.  
  
"Don't you EVER address him as my brother, you got that? I don't want to have anything to do with filth like him, okay? He's STILL a disgrace to my family, even though he's the boss of the Ishida Clan!" T.K. blasted.  
  
"Hey, take it easy, man. It's just that he wants to know if you want to accept this assignment when he learned you came back from Colombia. You see, Matt Ishida and Tai Kamiya have been at each other's throats for nearly a year now. Their gangs have been at war for quite some time, and it seems that neither side is giving in. T.K., Matt wants to add insult to injury to Tai. Matt, my boss, wants you to take out a special target," Davis said. T.K. didn't seem to have any expression of eagerness at all, since the art of assassination has become nothing more than a cake-walk. Trying to leave behind his hatred for his brother, T.K. let out a sigh.  
  
"...okay, Davis, who's the target this time? Tai's cocaine head-dealer? His weapons manufacturer? Who is it?" T.K. asked. Without saying a word, Davis took out a photo and placed it on the counter. T.K. slowly picked up the photo to get a good look to see who's next on his dead pool. As he got a good look on who the next victim will be, his eyes widened from underneath his dark sunglasses.  
  
On the photo was a beautiful woman, wearing a dress as white as snow. She appeared to be sitting on a piano, closing her lovely eyes and singing like a caged bird through the microphone. With a dropped jaw, T.K. slowly took off his sunglasses to relish the lovely, short-haired angel.  
  
"Her name is Kari Kamiya, Tai's little sister. Matt wants to take their little war to a more personal level and try to break Tai's soul. And since Tai's soul is the weakest point to strike, Matt feels it's best to strike down the only family he's got. Are ya gonna accept the assignment, T.K.? Her death is worth a lot of money," Davis said.  
  
For awhile, T.K. was completely lost of words. Never in T.K.'s life has he ever seen such a beauty before. T.K. began to lick his lips as he imagined her singing a lovely song just for him.  
  
"Uh... T.K.? How about it? If you're not going to do it for Matt, do it at least for the money! You'll get a helluva a lot of yen if you take her heart and present it to the boss," Davis said. As he heard what Davis said, T.K. shook himself away from the trance and quickly put his sunglasses back on.  
  
"... okay. Tell Matt I'll take the job. And make sure the money will go directly into my bank account. I'll have her heart in no-time," T.K. said in a cool manner. As T.K. left the tip for Davis, he said his goodbyes and left the Mt. Fuji Pub.  
  
T.K. could feel a cold breeze pass by as he raised his collar to cover his face. T.K. knew that where the cold breeze goes, chaos will follow. To his surprise, petals from a cherry blossom tree blew by. T.K. snatched one of them into his hand.  
  
"Strange. There aren't any cherry blossom trees 60 miles from here," T.K. said to himself. As he let go of the cherry blossom petal, he walked down the empty streets of Tokyo. The stars shined the night, but it seemed that none of them could shine away the darkness from within the assassin.  
  
"... time to claim my prize..."  
  
  
  
  
... to be continued. 


	2. Enter The Shard

It was a beautiful morning out in the park. The air was fresh, and the bright sun shined through the small clouds in the sky. Early in the morning, T.K. was performing his martial exercise known as Tai Chi when wearing a light jogging suit. Since the day was quite warm, he felt he didn't need to wear his black trench coat like he always does. Unlike the other hard arts that had to be performed with speed and fury, T.K. practiced Tai Chi with slowness and gentleness. His mind tells him that he's got to be totally prepared for the big night. He knew that if he was to kill his next target successfully, he must not make any mistakes of whatsoever.  
  
To finish the art, he placed his feet shoulder-width apart, stood upright and placed his hands to the sides. T.K. began to take a slow stroll through the park, watching the children play and laugh when their hearts were tickled by joy. He also caught a glimpse of a man and a woman strolling by, hand in hand.  
  
However, T.K. didn't feel that sense of joy at all. He's never felt such a feeling since he was a little boy.  
  
"Why? Why does it feel like there's something missing in my life? I'm one of the best professionals in the world, and I make more bucks than the President of The United States. So why do I feel so empty?" T.K. asked himself. T.K. took a seat on a bench where nobody sat. Letting out a deep breath, his mind traveled back to last night...  
  
-------------  
  
"Hey, Davis. I see that Kari is a singer. Does she perform every now and then?"  
  
"She sure does, T.K.! Kari's one of the most famous singers in the city! Sings like a beautiful nightingale! Every Thursday night, she performs at a wonderful restaurant/club named Tsunami, which isn't too far. There, no guy could take his eyes off of her! But you better be careful. That place is owned by Tai Kamiya. He always stresses the rule that no weapons are allowed."  
  
"Hey, just because I can't bring a weapon doesn't mean I can't kill, my friend. You gotta use your imagination, Davis. Weapon or no weapon, she'll die by my hands..."  
  
  
-------------  
  
"So she'll be at Tsunami tonight. I should be excited about this next assignment. It'll grant me millions of more yen than I usually earn. But why do I feel so... nervous? I... I killed so many dark targets throughout my life, and every one them has provened to be a great challenge to me. But why is Kari so different? According to Davis, she never lifted a gun in her whole life when out in the streets. This should be a piece of cake for me! Why do I feel so uneasy about this? Why?" T.K. asked himself.  
  
"Perhaps it's because your heart is telling you that you want Kari to live."  
  
T.K. was startled by who was speaking to him. As he whipped his head to his right, he realized that an Asian man wearing black pants, black shirt and sunglasses was sitting right next to him. The man seems to be Filipino, and his hair was cut really short. T.K was surprised that the man could be so close to T.K. without T.K. realizing his presence. Usually, T.K. can sense a presence from many meters away. This, however, was a complete surprise to the assassin. In a flash, T.K. got up from the bench and began to reach for his combat knife hidden underneath his jacket.  
  
"Who the hell are you? How did you sneak up on me like that?" T.K. asked.  
  
"Take it easy, my friend. I mean you no harm, okay?" the man said nicely.  
  
"Who do you work for? The Ishidas, the Kamiyas, or some other clan?" T.K. asked fiercely. With good agility, the man hopped onto the edge of the bench's back-rest and balanced on it with ease.  
  
"Like I said, I'm a friend. T.K., don't you ever listen to your heart? It seems like every time you take a life, you have this emptiness building within you, making you not listen to your heart at all. I can tell you what your heart is trying to tell you," the man said.  
  
"What the hell do you know about what my heart tells me? My heart tells me that I should be devoid of all feelings when it comes to the art of death! Kill or be killed: that's the law of the jungle! I do this to survive," T.K. stated. The man let out a sigh.  
  
"Once again, you're not listening to your heart. I'll tell you what your heart is really saying: it says that you're tired of being alone. Your heart yearns for something it has not had since the day you were born. You know what it is, T.K. You want it more than anybody, and you know the woman who can give it to you-"  
  
"SHUT UP! I don't need to hear any of this bullshit! If you don't shut your mouth, I will shut it for you!" T.K. shouted shakingly. The man hopped off the bench and walked to T.K. The man slowly walked to him, but not looking as though he intends to hurt him. Strangely, T.K. felt it was all right for the man to approach him. So he put his hand away from reaching the knife. As the slightly taller man was a few feet away from T.K., he gently placed his hand on his shoulder, almost looking like a father-figure.  
  
"You're so full of hate, so full of rage. This does not make a man out of you. T.K., you must listen to your heart. If you deny what your heart is telling you, you will forever suffer through the river of emptiness and despair. She's out there, T.K. She's the only one who can fulfill your greatest desires. She's the only one who will give you the meaning to live. She's the only one who can free you from the darkness. That, your heart tells you! You musn't give in to the demons anymore, T.K. Follow your heart. Then, and only then, can you truly live..."  
  
The man took his hand off T.K.'s shoulder and began to walk away. Standing right where he was, T.K. was astonished by how much wisdom the man had, for he appeared to only be in his mid-20's.  
  
"Hey, mister! What's your name?" T.K. shouted. Slowly, the man turned around to face the young man.  
  
"The name is... Shard." After saying his name, Shard turned again and resumed his stroll. After standing there for awhile, T.K. made a 180 and walked back to his hotel room. What he didn't know was that after he turned his back to the man in black, Shard disappeared into the shadows.  
  
".... follow my heart? Matt never taught me anything like that. All he taught me was that only the strong survive. Gotta focus on tonight. When I see Kari, we'll see what the night will bring...."  
  
  
  
  
.... to be continued. 


	3. As Their Eyes Meet...

No other club could compete with Tsunami when it comes to good food, hard drinks and wild entertainment. Best drinks? Tsunami. Best dancers? Tsunami. Most likely to pass a sanitation test? Tsunami.   
  
And it belongs to Tai Kamiya, warlord of the Kamiya Clan.  
  
The night grew wild for all who partied their hearts out in the magnificent restaurant/club. Some would let their liquor take them away from the real world while others would get down on the dance floor, movin' to the hardcore techno beat. Flashing colors were dazzling throughout the dancefloor whenever a challenge was made. At the bar, the bartender was having her hands full with a lot of men and women shouting out what they want to mingle with their blood.  
  
One of those people was a blonde young man in black, eyes shadowed by a pair of shades.  
  
"Hey, pal. What would you like? A wallbanger? Whiskey? What will it be?" the bartender asked in a snappy way.  
  
".... I'd like some milk. Two percent fat free," T.K. shouted out loud, trying to get his message past the booming music and right to the bartender. Strangely, even though he shouted it out, the bartender noticed a sense of coolness from his voice.  
  
"Okay. Milk, it is. What you like in it?" the tender asked.  
  
"Don't spike it. Just natural milk, okay?" T.K. asked. This made her raise a brow.  
  
".....oooookay. Milk, comin' right up." As the tender wore a smirk and turned her back to T.K. to get the milk ready, a couple of guys on his right side were chuckling to themselves and gave T.K. a funny look. T.K. noticed, and he was beginning to grow annoyed by it. When T.K. got what he asked for and took a couple of gulps, the two guys chuckled even more.  
  
"What's the matter, little boy? Too young to have some liquor like real men? Why don't you get some cookies to go with it?" one guy blurted. The man sitting next to T.K. drew out his hand and attempted to pinch T.K.'s cheek, wanting to treat him like a baby and humiliate him even more. As his hand was inches away from T.K.'s face, T.K. slapped his hand away and smashed the guy's face with the back of his right fist. The guy felt his mighty blow and got knocked right off his seat. The other guy saw everything, seeing his buddy out-cold with a broken nose and blood streaming all over his mouth. The other guy's heart began to pound with fear as T.K. gave him eyes of burning hatred through his glasses. Quickly, he got out of his seat to help his friend up.  
  
"We'll be out of your way. We're... we're sorry we caused any tro-"  
  
"Either you leave now or I'll have you join your friend," T.K. said gently. As the one with the broken nose was half-conscious, he was helped up by his friend and was escorted away from the professional. T.K. faced his seat to the bar and took another gulp.  
  
"Hey, not bad. Been working out?" the tender asked as she gave him inviting eyes.  
  
"Well... once in a while. Hey, do you know if Kari Kamiya will be performing tonight?"  
  
"Oh, you better believe it! Whenever things get a little too fast-paced here, Mr. Kamiya wants his little sis to sing some soft music to slow things down. Mr. Kamiya felt that too many clubs never play any soft music. So he had Kari perform so he could cool people down and keep things under control," the tender answered.  
  
The music began to die down and the flashing, colorful lights were turned off. Seeing the room-lights lit, the deejay took up the mic.  
  
"HEY, EVERBODY! IT'S TIME TO TAKE THIS VOYAGE TO A SLOW, GENTLER PACE. SHE'S THE ONE YOU'VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR! LADIES AND GENTS, LET'S GIVE IT UP FOR KARI KAMIYA!!"  
  
As the men heard her very name, all of them jumped up from their seats and ran for the tables closest to the stage. T.K. was impressed that Kari could get that kind of attention.  
  
"Hey, sexy. If I were you, I'd join those pack of wolves. You might miss an opportunity of a lifetime, if you know what I mean," the tender said. Feeling a sensation rush through his hands, T.K. got up from his seat, took his milk with him, and found the closest table possible.  
  
There must have been at least 50 guys waiting to be entertained by one of the most beautiful female musicians in all of Tokyo. Luckily, T.K. sat at one of tables closest to the stage. As the other men spoke about their favorite singer, T.K. felt his heart pounding harder.  
  
(Man, what's up with me? Okay, T.K., just keep your cool. Remember the reason why you're here. Don't.... don't let your emotions get in the way of your mission...)  
  
As he slowly took another gulp out of his milk, the stage-lights shined up the stage. On the stage was Kari, wearing a white, glittering dress and a lovely gold necklace. Lying on the piano on her side, she leaned on her elbow and gave the boys a wink. Seeing her gorgeous eyes and nice curves, many of the guys howled and whistled for their performer. Slowly, Kari sat up on the edge of the piano, flipped her short hair over her shoulder and crossed her silky legs. As Kari brought her mic to her mouth, she turned her eyes to the pianist.  
  
"Hey, Izzy. Let's do one of my personal favorites: 'Set Me Free.' Slow, soft and sweet. Okay?" Kari asked.  
  
"You got it Kari," Izzy said.  
  
As Izzy let the piano come to life with his fingers, Kari began to sing the slow song.  
  
Set me free...  
Take me away....  
I've got to find my true love today!  
Could you be the one I'm seekin?  
Your beauty leaves me weakened!  
Set me free riiiiight noooow......  
  
The lyrics and the piano keys were playing together like magic when they started the slow jazz song. The men near the stage and everybody else let the music sink into their beings and take them to a more beautiful world.  
  
As Kari continued to sing, she caught a blonde man in black with a corner of her eye. Trying to keep her song in rhythm, she was mesmerized by the man's handsomeness. She could tell that underneath that black outfit was a hard man, and hard men were hard to come by. When she was done with her second verse, she licked the tip of her finger as her eyes were set solely on T.K.  
  
T.K. never took his eyes off of Kari for one second. Her lovely features and her enchanting voice rendered T.K. helpless. Kari got up from her piano and began to strut towards T.K. As she was almost done with her song, she sat on T.K.'s lap and slowly took off his sunglasses. T.K. felt powerless to do anything as he felt her nice ass on his thigh and her soft hand caressing his face. Eye to eye, face to face, Kari softly sang her last words.  
  
Set me free...  
Take me home tonight....  
When we're together, we'll be suddenly out of sight!  
Don't you dare disappoint me!  
I really need you inside me!  
Set me free.... toooooniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight.......  
  
The whole capacity crowd applauded when Kari finished her soft song. Rather than stick around to gather around Kari, all the men got up from their tables and walked off. They knew that if any man messes with Tai Kamiya's sister, they'd be asking for a hell of a lot of trouble.  
  
T.K. was the only one who didn't leave his seat. That's because Kari was still sitting on his lap.  
  
"Hey, you're kinda sexy. What's your name, lover-boy?" Kari asked candidly, wrapping her arms around his neck.  
  
"My name is.... T.... K.," T.K. answered nervously.  
  
"Relax, T.K. It's not like I'm gonna bite your head off or anything. This was the first time I've ever got off the stage and approach a man like this! I... I was wondering if you can escort me home? You do seem more competent than my bodyguards, not to mention much handsomer," Kari said. T.K. blushed 3 shades of red. Nervously, T.K. began to open his mouth.  
  
".... sure. We can hop on my Kawasaki Ninja. Just tell me the way, and we'll be there in a split second," T.K. said  
  
"Awright. I'll meet you outside the front door," Kari said.  
  
------------------------  
  
Kari held on to T.K. as they drove down the Tokyo streets with amazing speed on his Ninja. Judging from how well T.K. received the directions and how fast he was going, they weren't too far from Kari's apartment.  
  
"Hey, Kari! How come your brother let you come with me? Isn't he worried about letting you go from under his wing?" T.K. asked through his helmet.  
  
"Oh, don't worry about him. He knows I'm a big girl who can take care of herself. Besides, for some reason, he thinks you might be the right one for me. Personally, I think he might be right..." Kari answered through her helmet.  
  
T.K. and Kari finally made it to her nice apartment. As T.K. perfectly parked his bike, they walked right into the building, took the elevator and entered her apartment.  
  
T.K. was astonished by Kari's interior decoration. The floor and walls were made of pine wood, and the walls were covered with beautiful paintings from Feudal Japan. Not only did she have a lovely living room with a 48-inch television set and a huge stereo, but she also has a very cute kitchen with white tiles on the walls.  
  
"Man, I got to give a lot of credit to your interior decorator. This is one of the most beautiful apartments I've ever-"  
  
Kari came from behind T.K. and began to slither her arms around T.K.'s body. T.K. froze and let out a light gasp as Kari lightly brushed her lips on his neck. Slowly, Kari unbuttoned his shirt and let her hand travel inside to feel his rock-solid pecs. T.K. closed his eyes as he felt her soft hands all around his chest. As she gave his left earlobe a light lick, Kari released T.K.  
  
"There's something about you that's making me so.... well, you know what I mean. Hey, T.K.... I'm going to get into something a lot more.... comfortable. I got a feeling this is gonna be the best night of my life!" Giggling with joy, Kari rushed to her bedroom to find the finest lingerie.  
  
T.K. still stood where Kari shared a piece of herself with him. T.K. couldn't believe that a woman like her would be so attracted to him so quickly. He also couldn't believe that he could fall for a woman he never met before.  
  
Slowly, T.K.'s face returned to stone. As he raised his right hand next to his head, a handgun popped out of his trench coat's sleeve and was snugged into T.K.'s hand. His finger lightly caressed the trigger. Seconds later, when he released his gun, the lethal weapon popped right back into his sleeve. The cold eyes beneath his sunglasses were still set on the unsuspected Kari.  
  
"This will be the best night of your life, Kari... but it's also gonna be your last...." he whispered to himself.  
  
  
... to be continued 


	4. One Shot

In the Kamiya Mansion, Tai Kamiya's secretary named Mimi Tachikawa entered Tai's master bedroom. As she slowly opened the enormous doors to his bedroom, Mimi saw Tai watching the fire burn with vigor in the fireplace while he had a glass of wine in his hand. Tai stood in front of the crackling fire, standing as motionless as a statue. Mimi knocked on Tai's opened door.  
  
"Mr. Kamiya? It's past 1 in the morning. Is something the matter?" Mimi asked.  
  
"No, Mimi... everything's fine." Tai said dryly. Noticing a sense of despair from her boss' voice, Mimi walked inside to get closer to him.  
  
"Mr. Kamiya, if something's wrong, then you should-"  
  
"Mimi, just call me Tai, okay? You calling me Mr. Kamiya kinda makes me sound like an old man. You've been working for me for over 6 months now. You've earned the right," Tai said.  
  
"I'm sorry, Mr. Kami- I mean, Tai. Are you worried about your sister, Kari? I'll have some of the men look over Kari and her date if you give the orders," Mimi said, now standing next to Tai.  
  
"No, that's all right, Mimi. I know that Kari is in good hands at this time of night. She may not know who that young man is, but I do. And believe me, she's in perfect hands. It's just that.... it's just that I wish..."  
  
Tai began to close his eyes and lower his head.  
  
" ... I wish I was there to protect her...."  
  
Mimi noticed a change in Tai's voice before he finished his sentence. What made her heart sink a bit was when she noticed a teardrop go down Tai's face and leave a trail. Mimi felt sympathy for him as she saw his tear get reflected by the fire. When Tai mentioned "her", he wasn't referring to Kari.  
  
"Mimi.... today was the day my love and I were to get married. After a long struggle to see who will win her heart, I ended up victorious. She and I were so happy together. We shared each other's secrets, each other's happiness, each other's souls. On the night before the wedding..." Tai was cut off by the memory of how his wedding day never came to be. Feeling for Tai, Mimi gently placed her hand on his shoulder as Tai opened his eyes and another tear streamed down his other eye.  
  
"... on the night before the wedding.... I found her lying on the floor.... lying in her own pool of blood."  
  
A slight pause filled in as he remembered the details. Tai began to choke from his tears.  
  
"She... she didn't deserve it. She was as sweet as honey, as pure as the stars. When I found her on the floor, she had a skull-dagger dug right into her heart. I... I knew immediately who did it...."  
  
Tai's sadness was beginning to be swirled with rage as he pictured the wielder of the dagger. Tai took a few steps away from Mimi's sympathetic touch and looked fiercely into the fireplace. Forming a "V" with his eyebrows, he stared coldly into the fire.  
  
"That murderer is nothing like T.K. He's a barbarian. Rather than let go of her, he forever took her away from me! I will never forgive him for what he did to her a year ago! I WILL SEE TO IT THAT HE AND HIS ENTIRE CLAN WILL BURN TO ASHES!!!"  
  
Feeling the rage overpowering his anguish, Tai let out a shout and threw the glass of wine into the fireplace. The fire rose higher as it tasted its fuel. As Tai watched the fire build up, he envisioned the murderer of his love burning in the pits of Hell.  
  
But that didn't help much. That didn't bring his love back. Feeling his anguish crashing over him like a tidal wave, Tai collapsed on his knees, covered his eyes and cried. Mimi felt her jaw tremble and her tears streamed down her eyes when she watched for the first time how much pain Tai was in. Immediately, Mimi kneeled with Tai and took him into her arms. Tai welcomed her embrace and held onto her, feeling like a lost child who finally found his mother.  
  
"She.... she was also my best friend. She... she didn't deserve it..."  
  
"Shhhhhh..... it's okay, Tai. I'm here for you. I'm here..."  
  
  
------------------  
  
  
As the crescent moon shined over the city, T.K. watched the moon as he was lying in bed with Kari. Kari was sleeping like a baby as she was wearing her silky lingerie with nothing underneath. The only thing T.K. had on was his black-silk underwear. T.K. knew that they couldn't go all the way to home base, since he didn't have a condom.   
  
So they settled for third.  
  
T.K. smiled as he watched Kari sleep through the night. His smile grew a bit wider as Kari unconsciously lied on her left side to face him. Kari seemed so much at peace, just like Sleeping Beauty. T.K. imagined himself as Prince Charming who would awaken her with a kiss and take her into his arms.  
  
But tonight, T.K. had no intention of waking her up with a kiss. He had no intention of sweeping her off her feet and taking her to his realm. What he had the intention of doing was making her sleep forever.  
  
And all it will take was one bullet.  
  
As his smile faded away, T.K. slowly took the covers off himself and quietly got out of bed. He gently placed the covers back onto Kari so she wouldn't wake up and notice what was to happen. As he got to his clothes piled on her chair, he took his sunglasses out of his pile and put them on. Wasting not time, T.K. took his handgun out of his trench coat, walked back to Kari, pulled the gun's chamber, and aimed the gun right at Kari's head.  
  
All he needed was one bullet, one bullet through the temple of the skull.   
  
Kari won't feel any pain, for death will come long before pain could. And where will pain exist in instant death? T.K. felt he was doing Kari a favor by using her slumber as a pain-killer.  
  
One bullet, just one shot and he'll receive his pay. T.K. cocked the gun's hammer.  
  
((.... don't deny what your heart tells you...))  
  
T.K.'s hand began to tremble. His heart began to grow sick as he tried to keep his gun steady on her skull. The muzzle of the gun was 3 inches away from the side of Kari's head. T.K. then saw Kari smile a bit while still fast asleep.  
  
(She's so .... perfect. She's beautiful, she's smart, she even loves Kung-fu flicks! But... but I have to do this. I... I can't refuse an assignment I have accepted...)  
  
((That's not what your heart is telling you, T.K. If you pull the trigger, you will kill off your heart, leaving you as nothing more than a soulless corpse that wonders the earth. Forget about the assignment. She's yours, T.K. Take her. Take her now...))  
  
Nobody will hear the shot. He can discared the body easily.  
  
((Take her...))  
  
All he needed was one caliber. T.K. slowly began to squeeze the trigger.  
  
((She's your soul-mate. It's your destiny...))  
  
Slowly, T.K. released the trigger and lowered his weapon. Looking like he witnessed someone's head chopped off by an axe, T.K. walked back to his pile of clothes. With a trembling hand, T.K. put back the gun's safety lock and carefully placed his weapon back into its holster.  
  
T.K. removed his sunglasses. As he felt a chill through his body, both hands trembled uncontrollably when he couldn't believe what he was about to do. T.K. tried to calm the trembling down.  
  
".... T.K.?" Slowly, T.K. turned his head. Kari was half-awake, sitting up from bed and rubbing her eyes a little.  
  
"Are you all right, T.K.? You look so... preoccupied. Why don't you come back to bed? No sense of leaving in the middle of the night. Besides, I really love your company," Kari said. Kari lifted the covers, inviting him to return to bed. After running his hand through his hair, T.K. slipped into bed and laid down next to Kari. When Kari pulled the covers back on, she wrapped her arms around T.K. and fell asleep.  
  
T.K. knew the consequences of failing to take down a target. As he felt Kari's heart beating against his chest, the consequences he knew were of no concern to him. That, he'll focus on another day. All he cared about was being with her. Feeling warm again, T.K. gently held onto Kari and closed his eyes.  
  
  
  
.... to be continued.  
  
  
  
  



	5. Playing with Fire

T.K. and Kari, hand in hand, were taking a stroll in the park. The blue sky welcomed the bright sun as it cracked through a few beautifully shaped clouds. T.K. and Kari enjoyed the fresh air that the spring brought out as a light breeze blew by. The couple didn't care who they passed by, such as other couples, children, mimes or illusionists.  
  
All they cared about was being with each other. True, it's only been almost a week since they first met. Even though they were strangers at first, they discovered they had so much in common, such as martial arts films, the love for motorcycles, anime, and other things.  
  
Especially the martial arts.  
  
"What? Bruce Lee better than Jackie Chan?! Now THAT'S what I call a bunch of bull, T.K. Jackie can whoop Bruce's ass any day of the week," Kari said.  
  
"It's true, Kari. Jackie may have more finesse, but Bruce has more power and speed than Jackie does. I'm sorry, but your hero ain't nothin' compared to Bruce," T.K. said. This brought a question to Kari's mind.  
  
"Hey, T.K. Since you know so much about Bruce Lee, do you practice his way of fighting?" Kari asked.  
  
"Sure I do. When it comes to a fight, I'm one of the best Jeet Kune Do fighters alive!" T.K. boasted. As they were about to get to the splitting "Y" of the sidewalk, Kari led T.K. off the sidewalk and into the grass. Smiling, Kari let go of T.K.'s hand, took a few steps away, and faced him.  
  
"Try it on me. Let's see if you can back your words up," Kari said, smiling. T.K. was a bit surprised.  
  
"Uh... aren't you afraid you're gonna get hurt?" T.K. asked.  
  
"Of course not, silly. Thanks to my big brother, I know a few moves myself," Kari said. Kari put her left leg forward and slightly bent both of her legs. Kari made her hands shaped like serpent-heads and had them in-line with the center of her eyes. Kari began to giggle to herself.  
  
(The art of the Snake. Not bad, Kari...)  
  
"If you think that Bruce can kick Jackie's ass, then back those words up, tough guy. Why don't you see if you can whoop my ass, hmmmmm?" Kari asked. Kari motioned T.K. to face her with her left hand. Smiling, T.K. got a little closer to Kari and faced her. T.K. put his right leg in front of his left and got into a Jeet Kune Do stance, which seemed similar to that of a boxer.  
  
"Kari, you're gonna be sorry you ever stood up for Chan. I ain't gonna hold back, ya know?" T.K. asked, smiling to himself. T.K. and Kari began to circle each other, seeing who would be the first to make a move. While Kari dragged her feet, T.K. shuffled around like a boxer. Kari began to make sounds that only Bruce Lee would make. That made T.K. start to giggle.  
  
"You have dishonored Jackie Chan, my mastuh. I shall regain his honor by bringing you to your defeat! WA-TAAAAAAHHH!" Kari shouted. T.K. tried not to laugh. Kari comes in for T.K. and gives him 3 quick kicks to the head with her right leg. T.K. shuffled back and parried the 3 kicks easily. Kari then struck for T.K.'s face with her left serpent-shaped hand. T.K. parried the attack and circled around her. Kari turned to face T.K. and struck for T.K.'s ribs with her right hand's fingertips. When T.K. parried it, Kari slithered her right hand around T.K.'s parry and quickly struck for the head with the same hand. T.K. saw the attack to his head and back-flipped away from her. Quickly, he regained his fighting stance. Kari made a sound of a snake as she made her hands move like a pair of snakes.  
  
"Hmmmm... not bad. You almost got me there my 2 inches," T.K. said. A thought came to T.K.'s mind, and that gave him a wide smile. The thought then made T.K. raise his brows at Kari.  
  
"Hey, what do you have running in that head of yours?" Kari asked, still in her kung-fu stance.  
  
"Why don't come for me and find out?" T.K. asked playfully. Trying to think what T.K. was thinking, Kari licked the top of her lips.  
  
"Okay! I'm gonna give a good kick to the family jewels!" Kari warned. Kari came for T.K. and delivered a front kick to the groin with her right foot. T.K. caught the kick with his left hand and raised her leg up high. T.K. raised his right leg a bit and swept Kari off her feet. As Kari let out a yelp and was about to hit the grass, T.K. caught Kari in his arm, kept her close and gently placed her down. With her right leg over his shoulder, T.K. mounted on top of Kari and felt her soft body press into his. Kari began to blush as she looked into the young man's eyes and felt his hardness rubbing into her softness.  
  
"Mmmmmm... I like this position. Don't you sometimes have the urge to do it right here right out in the open, T.K.? I'll get down on my hands and knees and I'll let you do all the work. How about it? Doggie-style..." Kari said. T.K. let out a gasp and began to blush really hard.  
  
"Kari, there's a lot of people out here. They can hear us..." T.K. whispered with a tone of embarrassment. Giggling, Kari wrapped her arms around T.K.'s neck.  
  
"I'm just kidding, silly! It's been 5 days since we first met, yet I felt I like knew you forever. It's... it's like we're destined to be together," Kari said, looking into T.K.'s ocean-blue eyes. As Kari ran her hand through T.K.'s hair, T.K. slowly leaned his face down toward Kari's. As they both closed their eyes, they felt great sensation when their very lips touched. Clinging onto one another on the grass, T.K. and Kari kissed.  
  
A man in a brown trench coat watched from far away as T.K. and Kari continued to let their bodies become as one. Sitting on a bench and wearing a pair of glasses, the blue-haired man took out his cellular and began to dial a number. In seconds, the man reached who he wanted.  
  
"Mr. Ishida? It's Joe Kido. I got some bad news. T.K. still didn't carry out the assignment. What should I do? Uh-huh. Uh-huh. No problem, boss. We'll teach him a lesson all right..."  
  
---------------------------  
  
  
----Later, that afternoon---  
  
  
Wearing black once again, T.K. walked right into the Mt. Fuji Pub with a smile as wide as the Grand Canyon. When he walked right in, he saw Davis behind the bar french-kissing a purple-haired woman. The woman with glasses ran her hands around Davis' back while Davis cupped her breast and gave it a light squeeze. The woman let out a light moan while she still clung onto Davis and locked lips with him.  
  
"Uh... if you need some privacy, I'll come back," T.K. said. Davis quickly opened his eyes and broke away from the woman when he heard his friend's voice.  
  
"Hey there, T.K.! Nice to see ya!" Davis said, blushing out of embarrassment. Quickly, Davis turned his attention to the woman.  
  
"Yolei, T.K. and I need a few minutes alone," Davis whispered.  
  
"Oh, I see.... I didn't know you go both ways, Davis. I gotta admit, you got good taste..." Yolei said, giving T.K. eyes of lust.  
  
"THAT'S NOT TRUE!! It's a matter of business," Davis whispered, startled by Yolei's words.  
  
"Suuuure it is. Hey, how about later tonight, you come to my place? This time, I'll let you wear these," Yolei said seductively, showing Davis a pair of handcuffs. Blushing harder, Davis hid the cuffs and nicely led Yolei to the door.  
  
"Don't worry, hun. I'll be at your place at 8. Be sure to wear something comfy..." Davis said, imagining Yolei wearing a see-through lingerie. After Yolei gave Davis a passionate kiss, she flipped her long hair over her shoulder and walked out the door. Seeing her fade from his sight, Davis fixed himself up and turned his attention to T.K.  
  
"Just pretend none of that happened," Davis said. Davis and T.K. walked to the bar to share a few words with each other. As T.K. sat at the bar, Davis walked behind it.  
  
"Davis, you wouldn't believe what happened to me. I met the most incredible woman the world! She's smart, she's sexy, she's-"  
  
"T.K., can I ask you a question?" Davis asked.  
  
"Uh, sure. What is it?" T.K. asked. In an instant, Davis slammed his hands onto the bar, giving T.K. eyes of pure anger.  
  
"HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND?!?" Davis screamed. This made T.K. raise a brow.  
  
"Davis, what are you talking about?"  
  
"You know what I'm talking about, ya damn baka! Do you have a DEATH WISH or something? What the fuck are you doing fooling around with your target?!" Davis asked. There was a slight pause after Davis asked T.K. that question. T.K. felt a chill run through his body.  
  
"... so you know. Davis, let me explain-"  
  
"T.K., you know the code of the assassin. You know what the consequences will be if you fail to take out a target and get associated with one. Why, T.K.? Why did you let her live?" Davis asked.  
  
"Because.... I love her," T.K. said.  
  
Five men stomped their way into the pub. All five men were wearing suits, nice and well-ironed. The leader with glasses was none other than Joe Kido, Matt Ishida's #1 guy. With arms crossed, all five men were staring at T.K. with eyes of pure ice. When T.K. saw the 5 men, T.K. turned his attention back to Davis and wore a crooked smile.  
  
"Word seems to spread like wildfire through the Ishidas. Davis... I need a workout. I'll be right back," T.K. said. Quietly, T.K. got out of his seat and walked to the Men's room. As soon as T.K. was inside, Joe and his men followed him.  
  
One by one, the five men got inside the enormous restroom. However, none of them could see T.K. anywhere.  
  
"Hey, man. Where is he?" one guy asked.  
  
"Don't worry. We'll find him. Besides, there's no way out except behind that door. The boss wants him to be beatened to a pulp. That's how Mr. Ishida wants to see him," Joe said. Suddenly the door to the Men's room slammed shut. All five men instantly turned around to see who shut the door.  
  
The one who closed the door was T.K., the Angel of Death. Wearing his shades, T.K. carefully eyed every man one by one.  
  
"Hiya, boys. Seems that my big brother isn't so happy about what I did. So you think you can beat me to a bloody pulp, huh? I think it's time to teach you boys something called humility..." T.K. whispered, wearing a crooked smile. Keeping his back to the door, T.K. slowly turned a small knob and locked it so nobody could get out alive.  
  
  
  
.... to be continued.  
  
  
  



	6. Am I My Brother's Keeper?

The Angel of Death took a few steps towards the five men, feeling like he was facing nothing more than a group of underlings. Every step he took towards them made them feel a chill down their spine, knowing by reputation how inhuman he can be when it comes to the art of combat. Despite feeling a sweat drop down their foreheads, all the men stood their ground.  
  
Big mistake.  
  
T.K. ran towards the closest guy and delivered a flying jump-kick right to the skull. The first guy got launched by the kick and crashed right into a wall. Seeing their buddy go down quick and make a huge thud, the next two guys ran right for T.K. The two of them were huge and powerful, but neither had the speed and grace T.K. did.   
  
T.K. gave the second thug a crescent kick to the head and spin-kicked the third thug, knocking them both down. The third thug went down real hard, but the second one shook off the kick.   
  
When the second guy got up and threw a wild fist at T.K.'s face, T.K. ducked the attack and rammed his right fist into the second guy's ribs. The 2nd guy writhed in great pain as he felt his ribs shatter. Hearing him bellow in pain, T.K. grabbed him by the hair and rammed his skull through the closest bathroom sink. He was knocked out cold when his head bled like crazy. The fourth thug in front of Joe stood there, frozen by fear, while the third guy was still a bit shaky from the spin-kick.  
  
"Well, don't just sit there! GET HIM!" Joe commanded to the third thug.  
  
The third guy shook off T.K.'s spin-kick and whipped out a bowie knife. He had his blade point down, raised it over his head and made a downward thrust right for T.K.'s jugular vein. T.K. put both hands up and blocked the attack. The Angel of Death grabbed His arm, made a 180 turn and performed a judo throw. The 3rd thug dropped his blade as he felt his back hit the floor really hard. T.K. grabbed the bowie knife, yanked his head back by the hair, brought the knife to his enemy's throat and made a new hole for him to breathe through. T.K. got up and watched as the 3rd guy choked from his own blood, slowly losing his lifeforce as he lied in his pool of red ooze.  
  
T.K. felt something metallic pressing against the back of his head. He knew what it was, and one wrong move could mean instant death. The fourth guy stood right behind T.K., pointing his gun right at the back of his skull.  
  
"Okay, mister badass. Enough of this bullshit. I'm finishing you off right here!" the 4th thug stated, cocking the hammer of the gun. Joe's eye winced from his accomplice's words.  
  
"Hey, that's not what Mr. Ishida ordered! Mr. Ishida wants him alive!" Joe said.  
  
"Forget that, man! He killed my friend, for cryin' out lou-"  
  
T.K. made his bowie knife point down and spun a 180 with fantastic speed. As the fourth guy saw a flash of metal from T.K., he screamed in pain as he realized the gun and his hand were gone. The 4th thug screamed in horror as he saw his chopped-off, bloodsoaked hand on the floor. Wth a crooked smile, T.K. dropped the knife and popped his gun out of his trench coat's sleeve. T.K. grabbed the guy, slammed his back to the wall and rammed his gun right into the guy's mouth. All the 4th guy could do was make a few mumbles as he could taste the gun-oil. The 4th thug trembled, knowing that Death was on its way for him.  
  
"Hmmmm... I wonder what it would be like to blow your brains out right on this wall? Maybe I could make a pretty picture with only one shot. What do you think?" T.K. asked nicely. The 4th guy let out a whimper as he saw T.K. begin to pull the trigger.  
  
"FOR G-D'S SAKE! THIS ISN'T NECESSARY! DON'T-"  
  
The gun went off. Blood splattered all over the wall as the bullet ate right through the 4th guy's head. As the blood began to stream down the wall, T.K. released the corpse and let it drop like a broken toy. Watching the blood all over the wall begin to run down, he made a sly grin.  
  
"Whoa. Looks like a dragon spreading his wings. Not bad, if I say so myself," T.K. said.  
  
Joe's pulse beat down on his throat, feeling as though he swallowed an insect that wants out. Joe's knees began to tremble as he saw T.K. set his eyes on him.  
  
".... take me to your boss. Now," T.K. commanded.  
  
"Please.... don't hurt me..."  
  
"Aw, shaddup and get me there."  
  
T.K. unlocked the bathroom door and led Joe and himself out. Davis quickly left his bar and took a look inside the bathroom. All Davis could do was stare with his jaw dropped.  
  
"I'll talk to ya later, Davis. Gonna have a chat with dear brother," T.K. said with sarcasm. As T.K. shoved Joe out of the bar to lead the way for him, Davis, the bartender, grinded his teeth and threw his towel on the floor.  
  
"**DAMNIT, T.K.!** You can't keep doing this! **DO YOU REALIZE HOW HARD IT'S GONNA BE TO CLEAN UP THAT MESS?!?**"  
  
-------------  
  
In his office, Matt Ishida twirled his glass of red wine and watched the wine move with the twirl. With a stoneface, Matt took a sip. A pair of doors opened right before Matt's eyes. In came a blonde man with sunglasses that could make it impossible to see his true eyes.  
  
"So, in comes to the Angel of Death. Ya know, T.K.? I always loved this brand of red wine. Whenever someone I despise dies or suffers, I always relish the taste of this wine. That's because I like to imagine it to be the blood of the one I hate the most. And to relish it even more, I always take it in sip by sip. But, today, this wine tastes flat. Do you want to know why?" Matt said.   
  
Matt brought his wine to his mouth and took it all in with one gulp. As his glass was emptied, Matt brought it near the side of his head. Thanks to Matt's grip, his glass began to form cracks. In a blink of an eye, the glass shattered into dozens of pieces. Matt wiggled his fingers to get the glass shards off his unscathed hand.  
  
"It's because you fucked up, T.K.! Kari was suppose to be dead five days ago! You had her right in your hands, and ya let the little bitch live! What was going through that head of yours, T.K.?" Matt asked angrily. T.K. slightly turned his attention away from his older brother, blushing as he pictured why he spared her life. Seeing how T.K. was behaving, Matt chuckled and got up from his seat to face T.K. As the brothers were face to face, Matt shook his head.  
  
"Hmph. I should have known. Rather than think with your head, you preferred to think with your dick. Well, I gotta admit, she really does look good enough to eat. Man, _I'd_ bang her all-"  
  
T.K. slapped Matt right in the face. Matt staggered a bit from the force of T.K.'s strike. Matt felt his face reddened by T.K.'s resentment.  
  
"Don't you ever talk about Kari like that. You got that?" T.K. threatened. Matt rubbed his face a bit as he gave his little brother dagger-eyes.  
  
"You shouldn't have done that. If you weren't my brother-"  
  
"HALF-brother to you! Man, you're still nothing but filth. Always wanting the easy way out. Damnit, Matt, you were the only one in the family who could have made a good living out of the Yakuza! Father always wanted you to graduate from college so you won't have to live in such a hellish life you're in now!"  
  
T.K.'s tone of voice began to cool down.  
  
"But no. You preferred to take over the Ishida Clan. Right in his death-bed, father was begging you to give up this Yakuza fiasco. And what did you do? You spat right in his face by staying!" T.K. said.  
  
Matt wore a crooked smile.  
  
"And why not? Why the fuck should I give up all this power? Out in the real world, I'd be nothing! But here, I possess TRUE power! Many people's lives pulled by my strings. Anyone who would give up such power would definitely regret doing such a thing," Matt said.  
  
Matt walked a few steps away from T.K. and turned his back on him. Matt faced a cupboard which was made out of pine and designed beautifully. Matt began to gently run his fingers on the cupboard.  
  
"But enough about me, T.K. What about you? It's your head on the line, not mine. You know the code of the assassin. It's much stricter than the code of honor the Yakuza has upheld for centuries. When an assassin fails to take down a target-"  
  
"Yeah, I know. He/she becomes the target," T.K. finished.  
  
"Look, T.K. I know you hate my guts, but you're still my little brother. I'm gonna give you one more chance..." Matt opened the cupboard and took out a black box. When he walked to T.K. and faced him, Matt opened the box slowly. Right before T.K.'s eyes was a silver dagger. The single-edged blade was curved and it had a jagged edge on the blunt side.  
  
On the end of the dagger's black handle was a silver skull.  
  
"T.K., this is a special dagger I have always cherished using. Over a year ago, I used this dagger to take down someone very special to Tai Kamiya when he wasn't living up to his word. Every time I pictured the look on her face when I sunk this dagger into her heart, I felt so damn good about it, knowing Tai can never have her! This dagger makes the art of death better than sex, and I'm sure it'll work for you," Matt said. Matt brought the black box closer to T.K. for him to take.  
  
T.K. stood there frozen, staring at the dagger.  
  
"T.K., you have to do it. I don't want to end up losing a brother to some stupid code. And if I let you live, then that'll make me a target as well. As your elder brother, I'm _ordering_ you to take down Kari Kamiya once and for all! Don't you disrespect family, T.K. Take her heart! For your sake...." Matt stated.  
  
Reluctantly, T.K. took the dagger out of the box.  
  
"That's the spirit, little brother. Remember: there are no third chances. Make me proud."  
  
As T.K. left the office with the skull-dagger snugged in his shirt, Matt sat down comfortably in his reclining chair.  
  
"Hehehehe... man, I can't wait to see Tai's face when he finds out that his only family will be food for the maggots!" With that, Matt let out an evil laugh. T.K. could hear his brother's laughter, and that made his skin crawl.  
  
As he was outside of the Ishida Estate, T.K. took out the dagger and eyed it. Seeing his reflection on the dagger, he lowered his head and closed his eyes. To hide his teary eyes, T.K. wore his sunglasses as he began to walk through the night to head back to his hotel room.  
  
"Kari.... _forgive me_...."  
  
  
  
... to be continued.  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	7. To Soothe The Dragon's Heart

As the stars shine through the night, Kari turned on her stereo. Letting the light, cool breeze pass into her apartment, Kari popped in her favorite Daft Punk CD called Discovery. By the time the CD got popped right in, her favorite song, "One More Time", began to play. The techno-disco song spread through her apartment through her enormous speakers, letting the music sink into her veins and animate her spirit.  
  
"Man, I just can't get enough of Daft Punk! I wish T.K. was here rather than leave me alone in this apartment. That way, we'd be jammin' to these songs together! And maybe we can get to heat things up a bit..." Kari said to herself, blushing at the thought of having T.K. on top of her in bed and performing the Missionary.  
  
"Hello, Kari...."  
  
Kari heard the unknown, gentle voice in her apartment. Immediately, Kari ran for the dresser near the television. Kari opened the drawer and whipped out her 9mm handgun.  
  
"AWRIGHT, YOU SONUVABITCH! COME OUT RIGHT NOW OR I'M GONNA FIND YOU AND POP ONE RIGHT THROUGH YOUR HEART!" Kari screamed, pointing her gun around wildly while seeking the intruder.  
  
Out of the shadows, a slightly tall, black-haired man dressed in black appeared. Wearing his black sunglasses, the man walked to Kari with a face of coolness. Not knowing what the man wanted, Kari felt a pinch of fear and began to have a difficult time keeping her gun steady on her intruder.  
  
"... You don't need that," the man said gently. When Kari looked down to her gun, she realized that the gun disappeared from her hands. Kari quickly set her eyes on the man again, finding her gun in his hands!  
  
The man dropped the gun.  
  
"Kari, your love needs you more than ever. He's been put into an extremely difficult situation that his older brother has thrown onto his shoulders. Kari Kamiya... T.K. is going to die," the man said. Kari lowered the volume for the stereo.  
  
"... what are you talking about?" Kari asked.  
  
The man stepped a few steps closer to Kari, towering over her.  
  
"Kari, T.K. was assigned to assassinate you. But T.K. experienced something he has never felt before in all his life, and he owes all his thanks to you. Even though Matt Ishida gave him the order, he still won't take your life. Instead..."  
  
He lowered his head, ashamed of what he'll say next.  
  
"...he's going to take his own. Most of his life, T.K. has been hurting inside. More than half the kills he has performed were innocent people, their deaths taking a bite out of his very soul. He didn't realize until it was too late. He tried to repress those memories, but he can't do that anymore. Now he's hurting more than ever before. T.K. believes that the only way he can stop bringing the pain upon himself and those around him is by ending his own life. To him, all those he care about won't be in danger anymore when death comes for him."  
  
Kari shook her head.  
  
"You're lying. I know T.K. better than anybody!" Kari said.  
  
"If you want to know the whole truth, Kari, take my hand. Then, and only then will you know everything," the man said, extending his hand to the lady. At first, Kari stood frozen and only stared at his hand he offered. But a feeling of trust somehow flowed into her mind. Slowly, Kari took his hand.  
  
Kari shut her eyes and seemed to have winced in pain. Kari's hand holding his began to shake uncontrollably. Her breathing began to go out of rhythm.  
  
"No.... that can't be true... T.K.... is the Angel of Death?" Kari asked herself. After a minute of holding his hand, Kari violently broke away from the man's touch. Shaking with great fear and letting out a scream, Kari collapsed onto her knees and turned her face away from the man in black. The man knelt down and tried to help her up.  
  
"DON'T TOUCH ME!" Kari shouted, overwhelmed by the visions of T.K.'s past thrown right at her in one minute. The man in black helped himself up.  
  
"So now you know the truth. Now you know why he needs your help," the man said. Kari turned her face to the man, feeling a tear forming in her eye as she had in her mind all the years T.K. has suffered through.  
  
"He...he's in so much pain. What kind of a brother can force him to do this?" Kari asked.  
  
"Kari... I did all I could to help him not fall any deeper into the darkness. But now here's the point where not even _I_ can save him. Kari... only your touch can finally soften his heart. You will know when the time is right..."  
  
Kari lowered her head, not realizing how much pain T.K. kept inside all those years.  
  
"I must go now. You will know what to do," the man said.  
  
"Mister, don't go! What must I-"  
  
As she looked up, the man in black vanished.  
  
"...do?" How the man vanished was of no concern to her. What she's concerned about now is how to help T.K. release all the inner demons he has stored inside. She could still remember all the targets he was forced to take down, half of them being innocent people. She could also remember the pain he went through after every assassination of an innocent one. Feeling her heart ache, Kari sat on her sofa and wiped the tears away as she listened to her Daft Punk CD.  
  
"Oh, T.K.... why didn't you tell me? We could have talked about it, you know? I... I have to find him! I have to-"  
  
The doorbell rang.  
  
Kari's heart leapt the instant she heard the doorbell. Quickly, Kari got up and ran for the door. When she opened the door, Kari's eyes were set on a blonde man in black. Eyes hidden by shades, T.K. began to speak.  
  
"Kari... can I come in?" T.K. asked.  
  
"Yes, please," Kari said politely. As T.K. walked in, T.K. took off his trench coat and tried to find the coat hanger.  
  
"Here. Let me hang it for you," Kari said. Kari took the trench coat and hung it for him. Kari turned her eyes on T.K., whose facial expression was that of pure sorrow. Seeing such an expression underneath those shades moved her heart.  
  
"T.K.... is something the matter? Wanna talk about it?" Kari asked. The Daft Punk CD mysteriously changed to the next song called "Something About Us". Kari slowly walked to her beloved, seeing him standing still as a statue and hurting inside.  
  
"Kari... I'm here to say goodbye. And I'm not ever going to see you again," T.K. said quietly.  
  
"But why? We were so happy together, you and I. What is it that's eating you up inside?" Kari asked.  
  
(Please, T.K. Just tell me. Don't keep it inside and let it fester in you. Tell me so you can feel better...)  
  
"You... you just wouldn't understand," T.K. said with a shaky voice. As Kari was about to lay her hand on his shoulder, T.K. took a few steps away from her. T.K. was tired of getting everyone around him killed. Whether it was by his own hands or by the hands of others, innocent human beings, target or not, wounded up dead.  
  
T.K. refused to let Kari be the next.  
  
T.K. recognized the slow song by Daft Punk called "Something About Us." Knowing the lyrics, T.K. turned his back on Kari and decided to sing the lyrics that summarized what he wanted to say to her.  
  
'It might not be the right time  
I might not be the right one  
But there's something about us I want to say  
Cause there's something between us anyway'  


  


Feeling T.K.'s pain through the song, a large tear streamed down her eye and she covered her mouth as her sorrow for T.K. began to grow.  
  
'I might not be the right one  
It might not be the right time  
But there's something about us I've got to do  
Some kind of secret I will share with you'  
  
Singing those lyrics, T.K. slowly drew out the skull dagger and kept it hidden by Kari's eyes.  
  
'I need you more than anything in my life  
I want you more than anything in my life'  
  
T.K. saw his reflection on the blade. Keeping the dagger out of Kari's sight, T.K.'s jaw trembled and his heart sank deep as he pictured himself with the dagger in his own heart rather than in Kari's... and feeling that Kari won't have to suffer the same fate as his other victims did.  
  
'I'll miss you more than anyone in my life  
I love you more than anyone in my life....'  
  
Kari couldn't take it anymore. Kari slowly walked behind T.K. and let her arms slither around his body. T.K. felt the angel's touch and felt powerless to resist. Resting her head on his shoulder and letting her tears soak his shirt, her hand slowly slithered to T.K.'s hand holding the dagger.  
  
"T.K.... I know everything about you. Don't leave me.... please..." Kari gently wrapped her hand on T.K.'s. Overwhelmed by the need to be with Kari, T.K. let the dagger slip out of his hand. The dagger made a clang as it hit the floor.  
  
In a flash, T.K. let out all his sorrow and clung onto his angel. Feeling his strength leaving his legs, T.K. collapsed to his knees. Refusing to let go of T.K., the tearful Kari held onto her powerful dragon and fell to her knees as well. Not caring about how Kari found out about his profession, T.K. continued to sob as Kari tried to comfort him and let his head rest on her shoulder.  
  
"I... I can't do it, Kari. I could never hurt you!" T.K. sobbed.  
  
"I won't let you leave me... We're meant to be together... forever..." Kari whispered. Kari gently kissed T.K.'s neck. T.K.'s sobbing began to fade away as he felt Kari's lips brushing by his neck. T.K. closed his eyes and returned the favor by kissing Kari on the neck as well. Feeling her tears finally end, Kari let out a light moan as she felt his lips kissing her g-spot.  
  
Slowly, the dragon and the angel looked into each other's eyes. Through their eyes, they both saw what they needed, what they craved. Neither of them could keep their yearning inside any longer. Gently, Kari removed T.K.'s sunglasses and let it drop to the floor.  
  
They kissed. Their passions for one another surged through their bloodveins as their lips and bodies touched. Continuing to kiss, Kari ripped T.K.'s shirt open, having his buttons pop off. T.K. felt electricity rush through as he felt Kari's hands all over his bare chest and her lips kissing his. Wanting more from Kari, T.K. cupped one of Kari's breasts and had his other hand run all around her curvy ass.  
  
Kari's lips broke away from T.K.'s. Kari set her eyes on her beautiful bedroom. Seductively, Kari set her eyes onto T.K.'s. T.K. blushed by what Kari wanted. As a crooked smile formed on his face, T.K. helped Kari up on her feet and quickly carried her into his arms. Not able to hide her blushed face, Kari wrapped her arms around T.K.'s neck as he carried her to her bedroom. Not bothering to close the door, T.K. and Kari were about to love one another in the ultimate way....  
  
  
------The next morning------  
  
  
Matt Ishida sat at his desk, staring coldly at the door in front of him. Never had he felt rage crash onto him like now. Waiting for his #1 guy, Matt let his fingers tap onto the desk.  
  
"... How dare he disobey me, his elder brother...."  
  
Joe Kido opened the door and walk right into his office. Joe slightly trembled at Matt's presence. Joe trembled even more as he pictured Matt taking a shotgun and blowing his head clean off just to make himself feel a little better.  
  
"Is... is there anything you need, Mr. Ishida?" Joe asked shakily.  
  
"... From this day forward, I have **_no_** brother! T.K. Takaishi knew what the consequences are. Thanks to the news you brought to me, T.K. has received an invitation to TOTAL CHAOS!  
  
"Joe... I want you to contact for me... _Ken Ichijouji_...."  
  
Joe's eyes widened by Matt's command.  
  
"Ken Ichijouji.... **The King of Blades**?? Please reconsider, Mr. Ishida. He's a maniac- no, a _monster_! The last target he took out was skinned alive! After that, Ken ate his victim's-"  
  
"I DON'T GIVE A DAMN ABOUT HIS RESUME! From what I know, Ken is the best, and not even the **Angel of Death** can stop him! I want T.K.'s head, and I want Ken to deliver it to me in a basket!!"  
  
Matt revolved his chair and turned his back on Joe, letting him know that he needed his privacy. Joe understood and left his office immediately.   
  
"Too bad, little brother. You've just signed your own death warrant..."  
  
  
...to be continued.  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	8. Enter The King of Blades

The dark night has began anew, thanks to the beautiful twilight that welcomed it. Life in the city has never been more alive than now, with millions of people roaming the streets and letting the night raise their spirits. Some people may feel that the night is the right time to rejuvinate for the next day to come. But other people felt the night to be the perfect time for the beast within to awaken and party the night away, filling the night-clubs and dancing to their hearts' desire to the best club music around.  
  
However, one man wasn't so happy to be out at this time of night. Joe Kido, Matt Ishida's #1 guy, entered the club known as The Rising Sun with two of his flunkies. As a Daft Punk song called "Phoenix" was blasting through the club, the three Ishida men had to squeeze through the men and women to get to the meeting spot that was agreed upon.   
  
"Oh, man! Why does Mr. Ishida have to make me meet that guy at this time of night? I'm suppose to be at home, taking a snooze in my soft bed and counting sheep. Staying up this late will only put bags under my eyes," Joe whined. However, what Joe didn't complain about was getting squeezed into the women, since every one of them would look enticing in a wet t-shirt contest.  
  
After 10 minutes of squirming through the people, Joe and his men finally got to the table where they agreed to meet him. Sitting with his lovely ladies, the handsome, purple-haired man sat comfortably and greeted the 3 men by raising his glass of wine with a smile. The man flung his purple, silky hair away from his eyes. The ladies near him feasted their eyes on him, finding the purple-haired man irresistable and yearning to rip his clothes off.  
  
There was something about that smile that made Joe's skin crawl. It wasn't a smile that said he was glad to see the blue-haired man with glasses. The smile seemed to have a very dark intent behind it. Joe knew the King of Blades only by reputation, and he prayed in his mind he wouldn't find out the hard way whether the rumors were true about the dark assassin. Trying to keep their cool, Joe and his 2 goons took their seats and faced the enigmatic killer.  
  
"Ken Ichijouji, I presume?" Joe greeted, trying to keep his cool.  
  
"You gotta be one of Mr. Ishida's goons. I heard about that little scene you and your men had with Mr. Takaishi a couple of days ago at the Mt. Fuji Pub. Man, talking about being a bunch of pussies," Ken said candidly, followed by a chuckle. Ken's women giggled by his remarks about Joe. The lovely blonde closest to Ken slipped her smooth tongue down Ken's throat, and Ken clutched onto to her for more of her sweet taste. Joe's made his eyes slit, bitten by Ken's harsh words.  
  
"Look, let's get down to business, Ken. Mr. Ishida wants you to take down a target for him, due to disloyalty to his family," Joe said. Joe handed him a photo of Ken's target. Ken snatched the photo from Joe and took a good look at it.  
  
On the photo was T.K. Takaishi, dressed in black and eyes hidden by a pair of shades. Holding onto him from behind was Kari Kamiya, with her eyes closed.  
  
"I took this photo last night at Kari Kamiya's apartment. Mr. Ichijouji, the warlord of the Ishida Clan demands that you snuff out the Angel of Death. He'll double your reward if you can kill Tai Kamiya's little sister, too. Do you think you're up to it?"  
  
With a sly smile, Ken threw the photo up in the air. With the speed of lightning, Ken whipped out his tanto (dagger) and sliced the airborne photo in half in an upward motion. The photo fell onto the table as two separate pictures, having the pictures of T.K. and Kari separated by his very blade.  
  
"You know what my answer will be, little man. I guarantee, those two will be lying in their own pool of blood, and I will be glad to bathe in it," Ken said. With eyes of daggers on T.K.'s photo, Ken faced the tip of his blade downward and rammed it into the photo of T.K.'s head, right between the eyes.  
  
  
---Meanwhile, at T.K.'s hotel room---  
  
  
"Oh, T.K. You're so damn good! Come on, baby! Don't stop now!! LOVE ME!!!"  
  
Kari was on her back as she felt T.K.'s weight on her. Kari and T.K. moaned at a very high volume as they continued to share each other. T.K. moaned louder and clutched onto his naughty angel as Kari was reaching her climactic moment and wrapping her legs around his waist.  
  
Kari screamed like never before and climaxed. T.K. let out a roar and climaxed soon after she did. The weakened T.K. got off of Kari and collapsed next to her. Covered with sweat, T.K. and Kari took a breather and stared up the ceiling.  
  
"Wow... I can't believe I came 4 times in a row in one night. Man, that was better than last night..." Kari said, huffing for breath and slithering to her beloved to give T.K. a light kiss on the lips.  
  
"Kari... are you sure last night was your first time?" T.K. asked, astonished by Kari's performance. Kari let out a naughty giggle.  
  
"It's the truth, T.K. I learned a lot when I read Maxim. I read that when we have sex 3-4 times a week, we'll get a good workout," Kari said seductively. T.K. let out a devilish smile.  
  
"Mmmmm.... my kind of workout," T.K. said. T.K. took Kari into his arms and kissed her in the lips with tremendous passion. As they clutched onto each other's sweaty bodies, the phone rang. Reluctantly, T.K. picked up the phone.  
  
"Hello? Can you please call back another time? I'm kinda busy right now," T.K. said  
  
"/Hello, Angel of Death. I'm here to clip your wings.../" the voice said. T.K. recognized that voice, and he felt his heart sinking below his stomach.  
  
"....you...." T.K. whispered, feeling his hand holding the phone tremble.  
  
"/That's right, Takeru Takaishi. You fucked up, Angel of Death. Since you've failed to live up the code, you're on my dead pool now, and so is your girl. You know you have no chance against me, upstart. I'm gonna enjoy having you taste my blades... and your own blood.../"  
  
  
  
.... to be continued.  
  
  



	9. As The Clouds Grow Dark

As the rising sun rose over the Kamiya Mansion, Kari watched out the window nervously, waiting for her beloved to return. Kari could never forget that night, the night where for the first time, Kari saw fear and panic in T.K.'s very eyes.  
  
  
--Last Night--  
  
  
"Kari, I have to take you to your brother's mansion right now. You'll be safe there," T.K. said, quickly throwing her clothes to Kari.  
  
"T.K., what are you talking about? Can you tell me what's going on here?" Kari asked, beginning to put her clothes back on. T.K. didn't bother to answer as he started to dress up. T.K. was interrupted by Kari's grip on his hand as he was about to grab his trench coat.  
  
"T.K., you've been acting strangely ever since that phone call. I won't let go until you tell me what the hell is going on here!" Kari said, fully dressed. When T.K. reluctantly nodded, Kari released his hand.  
  
".... okay. Kari, I've been branded as a target, and my brother hired the best assassin of all! If I die, he'll be coming for you, too, since it's his duty to finish off who I was assigned to kill. Kari, I want you to stay at your brother's place until this is all over. Understand?" T.K. asked. Instead of asking her nicely, he asked her with authority.  
  
"But T.K., I can't leave you! We're in on this together-"  
  
"NO! I can't afford to let that wolf get to you, Kari. Just stay at Tai's place. Please..."  
  
"... Okay, T.K...."  
  
  
----Now---  
  
  
"Kari? Are you all right?"  
  
Kari turned her attention to who was speaking to her. Right before her eyes was her elder brother, Tai Kamiya.  
  
"Good morning, Tai. I'm... I'm fine," Kari said quietly. Tai walked closer to his little sister.  
  
"Come on, Kari. You can tell me. So what's up?" Tai asked candidly.  
  
"I'm... I'm not sure if we should let T.K. challenge his assassin all by himself. He'll do anything take T.K.'s head... and mine," Kari said. Kari's last words sent chills through Tai's heart.  
  
"Look, Kari. We're talking about the Angel of Death here. I'm pretty sure that T.K. will finish off his assassin easily. I've seen him in action before. You got nothing to worry about," Tai said. Tai hoped that Kari would let out a light smile to show some optimism.  
  
Kari didn't smile at all as her eyes were still on the trees that were being lightly brushed by the wind. Eventually, Tai's smile began to fade away.  
  
"Kari.... did T.K. by any chance give you the name of the assassin who's after him?" Tai asked. Tai's hand began to make a fist, awaiting Kari's answer.  
  
"T.K. said his name was The King of Blades," Kari answered, eyes still staring blankly out the window. The answer Kari gave made Tai's world freeze right before his very eyes.  
  
".... Oh my G-d. Not good, not good at all!" Tai asked in terror. Tai ran out the living room and right down the hall. As he got Mimi, his personal secretary, in his sight, Tai shouted to her. By the time Mimi turned her attention to her boss, Tai stopped at his tracks right before the hazel-eyed beauty.  
  
"MIMI, GET IZZY AND THE OTHERS! WE HAVE TO FIND T.K RIGHT AWAY! IF WE DON'T FIND HIM SOON, HE'S GONNA BE A DEAD MAN!! HURRY!!!"  
  
  
---------  
  
  
  
The Angel of Death stood over the rubble of the abandoned sector of Tokyo. His black trench coat rippled with the wind as he stood and awaited his dark enemy. Armed to the teeth, T.K. looked all around to see if the King of Blades arrived yet.  
  
"Well, this is the spot we agreed to meet. It's a good thing we chose this area so no innocent bystanders would get hurt," T.K. said to himself.  
  
"You really know how to take the letter 'F' out of word 'fun'. It would have been more fun to see who can kill more people than whom."  
  
T.K.'s heart beat harder as he whipped his head to who was speaking to him. T.K. saw a cloaked man standing high above on the rubble. His very face was shrouded by a huge hood, shadowing everything but his mouth. Slowly, the man removed his hood and revealed himself to be a handsome man with straight, purple hair combed to one side.  
  
"It's you...." T.K. said. T.K. didn't have that tone that would belittle anyone who would challenge his prowess. Those two words had a little more fear behind it.  
  
With the agility of a cat, Ken leaped off the huge rubble and stood face-to-face with the young assassin.  
  
"Soooo... right before my eyes is the Angel of Death. You don't really look like you could live up to the name, T.K. I gotta warn ya: no man or woman that crossed me has ever survived. It'll be an honor to send you to Hell with my very own hands..."  
  
Wearing a crooked smile, T.K. popped both guns out of his sleeves and gripped them firmly in his hands.  
  
"LET'S DANCE!"  
  
  
  
... to be continued.  
  
  
  
  



	10. Looking Death Straight Into The Eyes

As quick as a cobra's strike, T.K. raised his guns at Ken and opened fire. Without hesitation, Ken jumped out of harm's way and began to sprint away from T.K. The Angel of Death saw Ken sprint to his left and continued to open fire, refusing to give Ken any space to breathe. After the 20th shot, Ken leaped in the air, landed on some rubble, faced T.K. and drew out his own pair of silver 45-caliber handguns.  
  
"You gonna die, bitch!" Ken screamed.  
  
Ken fired away at T.K. like crazy. T.K. somersaulted away from Ken's fire and ducked for cover. T.K. felt some Ken's bullets ricocheting off of his cover, feeling the debris falling down his head. When he heard Ken cease fire, T.K. popped out of his cover and let his fingers turn triggerhappy. Ken ducked for cover from T.K.'s wrath. Ken hit the dirt in safety and let out a curse when he felt one of T.K.'s bullets whisk through his hair.  
  
As their backs were turned to each other while hiding from each other's firepower, T.K. and Ken emptied their guns of their hollow magazines. T.K. and Ken rushed through their belts and snatched out their new magazines. The assassins felt the hearts pumping harder than before as they popped their magazines into their guns and want to see who would be first to be back in action.  
  
"Son of a bitch. He's good, real good," T.K. muttered to himself.   
  
T.K. felt his veins thumping by his throat as he awaited Round 2 with the King of Blades. T.K. let out a battle-cry and whipped right out of his cover. In a blink of an eye, T.K. was face to face, and gun to gun, with Ken. The guns in their right hands were pointing right between each other's eyes while their guns in their left hands were ready to end each other's heartbeat. A sweat dripped down T.K.'s head as he looked through his sunglasses right into Ken's eyes, eyes eager to see T.K. in a coffin.  
  
"I underestimated you, upstart. You're quite better than I anticipated. Boy, how I'd like to see your older brother's face when he sees that Takeru Takaishi finally met his match. But I got some bad news for you, little man," Ken said, with a smile on his face.  
  
T.K. let out a grunt.  
  
"You see, I have the fastest trigger-fingers in the world. If I see even a slight twitch from any of your fingers, you die. Sorry to burst your bubble, but this duel is over even before it has begun," Ken announced.  
  
T.K. felt fear bite down through his throat. He knew deep within himself that Ken was right. T.K. learned that Ken had more confirmed kills than any other assassin on the planet, and every victim of the King of Blades was a cold-blooded warrior who refused to go down easy.  
  
The Angel of Death refused to let Kari fall to the hands of such a monster. T.K. knocked Ken's guns out of range with his own guns and delivered a big boot to Ken's chest. Ken let out a grunt and hit the dirt real hard. T.K. ran for a short, wooden wall nearby and leaped right over it.  
  
Grinding his teeth, Ken got up and pointed his deadly firearms at the wooden wall T.K. was behind.  
  
"FACE ME LIKE A MAN, YA COWARD!" Ken shouted. Ken opened fire at the wall, making the wall have as many holes as swiss cheese. T.K. rolled onto his back and returned fire as he saw the daylight break through the wall. T.K. fired again. And again. And again.  
  
Click.  
  
("No. Not now.")  
  
Click.  
  
T.K. was out of bullets, and he doesn't have enough time to reload. T.K. then heard Ken calling out T.K., followed by a dreadful laugh.  
  
"Hey, T.K. I'm out of bullets, too. Why don't we settle this the ancient way: hand to hand! What do you say, upstart?" Ken asked.  
  
T.K.'s brows formed a "V" shape.  
  
"QUIT CALLING ME THAT, ASSHOLE!" T.K. shouted. After popping his guns back into his holsters, T.K. smashed right through the bombarded wall and tackled Ken to the ground. Mounting himself on top of Ken, T.K. rammed his left fist into Ken's face, followed by a right, a left, and another right. As his left fist was about to connect to Ken's face again, Ken caught T.K.'s fist with his right hand. Smiling while blood trickled down the edge of his mouth, Ken began to squeeze T.K.'s fist. T.K. winced in pain as he felt Ken's powerful grip slowly cause T.K.'s bones in his fist to crack. Ken got up and continued to squeeze T.K.'s fist, forcing T.K. to go down on one knee.  
  
"You really disappointed me, Angel of Death," Ken said, wiping the blood off his jaw while still injecting pain into T.K.'s sqeezed fist. In a split second, Ken forced T.K.'s fist to face upward. T.K. let out a menacing scream as he felt his left arm get twisted. Holding onto T.K.'s fist, Ken rammed his left fist into T.K.'s solar plexus. Seeing T.K. lose almost all the air in his body, Ken released T.K. and delivered a menacing right cross to T.K.'s head. T.K. felt the wrath of Ken's blow knock him off his feet, spiraled in the air and hit the dirt face-first. Blood poured out of his mouth as he opened his eyes and saw a blurred vision of a man in black with purple-bluish hair standing over him.  
  
Ken took his sheathed katana off his back and slowly drew the katana out of the scabbard. Ken relished the feeling of drawing his katana out to have it feed on human blood once more. Victory sung in Ken's ears as the sunlight made the blade shine.  
  
"Allow me to introduce my blade, Masamune. He thirsts for blood once again, and now he yearns for yours. It's too bad you didn't get to feel the fury of the King of Blades. Your head will make a real good trophy for my wall..."  
  
  
  
... to be continued. 


	11. Out of the Frying Pan, Into The Fire!

The King of Blades towered over the helpless Angel of Death as Ken had his trusty katana, Masamune, in his hands. Ken's sword has tasted more blood than any other weapon in all of Asia, used by many generations of ronins, ninjas, and warlords. Now Masamune has fallen into the hands of the most lethal creature of all!  
  
Feeling the urge to split T.K.'s head wide open, Ken raised his blade over his head and was prepared to open the Angel of Death's gate of life. T.K. could barely move as he was flat on his back. He couldn't believe how much power Ken has within himself. To T.K., Ken's sheer power seemed almost inhuman.  
  
"Thanks to you, T.K., I'm gonna be a very rich man. Not only am I gonna have a shitload of yen, but my name shall send great fear throughout the underworld when they find out that the Angel of Death has fallen before me!" Ken said. T.K. saw the tip of Ken's blade shine like a star. All T.K. could do was lie there and wait for Death to come for him. T.K. didn't have any way to defend himself against Ken's deadly blade, nor did he have the energy. But T.K. refused to show any fear to the King of Blades, for it was better to die with honor than to die like a spineless coward.  
  
A white van crashed right through the glass wall of an abandoned building and headed straight for Ken. Ken let out a swear and rolled out of the van's hazard zone. The van screeched to a halt and stopped next to T.K. Ken got up from the dirt and faced the ones inside the van. The door on the right side slid open in a blink of an eye. Izzy pointed his 2-barrel shotgun right at Ken's very heart, finger light on the trigger.  
  
"SMILE!! YOU'RE ON CANDID CAMERA!" Izzy said candidly.  
  
"HOLY SHI-" Izzy squeezed the trigger. The shotgun went off with an enormous boom and knocked Izzy back into the other door of the van. Ken let out a grunt as the shells blasted into Ken's chest and sent him crashing through a stone wall. As they saw Ken fall face-first into the dirt, the left-side sliding door opened quickly. Two men jumped out of the van and quickly helped T.K. up.  
  
"Come on, you two! Get him inside right now! MOVE IT!" Tai commanded. Quickly and carefully, two of Tai's men got him inside the van. By the time both sliding doors slid shut, the driver put the pedal to the metal and burned rubber. Leaving Ken in the dust, Tai and his men drove at maximum speed for the Kamiya Mansion.  
  
Tai and Izzy checked on the Angel of Death, seeing if T.K. had any serious injuries. With dazed eyes, T.K. looked around to see where he was, for he wasn't too clear about what just happened. Izzy looked at Tai, shaking his head.  
  
"I just can't believe it. I thought the Angel of Death would really finish off the King of Blades. Man, was I wrong. Tai, his left arm seems a bit battered up, but it isn't serious. Give him a day or two, and he'll be back in top-notch shape," Izzy said.  
  
Tai shook his head.  
  
"That's not enough, Izzy. I don't want T.K. to just be back in shape. I want him to be stronger. If he stays at that level, he'll never be able to protect Kari or himself from that monster," Tai said.  
  
"Tai, what are you worried about? That shotgun finished off Ken real good! Not even a bulletproof vest could bounce off those shells," Izzy said.  
  
"Izzy, you have no idea what Ken really is. Izzy... it's time for T.K. to learn the ways of true assassination. Ken has learned the Way of The Tiger's Fang. Now I must teach T.K. to fight a creature with such power. I may not be allowed to challenge an assassin when he/she is in a battle with another, but I can still help T.K. to reach a whole new level of power to send Ken to Hell once and for all," Tai said.  
  
Izzy's eyes widened.  
  
"Contact Mimi. Tell her to get everything ready so we can patch T.K. up. It's time for the Angel of Death to ascend."  
  
  
***  
  
  
The dust blew by Ken's hair as he layed motionless in the dirt. A huge hole took up much of his torso, leaving his arteries squirting with blood all over the ground and a quarter of his left lung nearly falling out. His heart was blasted into dozens of pieces and scattered all over the ground when it was first to feel the bite of Izzy's shells.  
  
Suddenly, the pieces of Ken's heart began to crawl back to their host. Slowly, every part of Ken's flesh and his scrapped heart reconnected back on into Ken. After all the parts of Ken's torso were back into place, the hole began to close and new skin grew back on Ken's body.  
  
With a sudden breath, Ken's eyes opened.  
  
Slowly, Ken got up from the ground and retrieved his beautiful katana. Standing coolly, Ken set his eyes southward.  
  
"So... T.K. had some help. The Kamiyas may have shot me, but I know whose shotgun they bought it from. Man, he's gonna pay big time..."  
  
Ken's lips split into a smile.  
  
"Shard. I know you're here. If you got somethin' to say, then out with it," Ken said, still setting his eyes to the south. Out of the shadows, the man in black appeared and stood a few with Ken's back to him.  
  
"Ken, you should never have made that deal with Mazarkal. Sure, that demon may have taught you the Way of the Tiger's Fang, but that art should never be used for personal gain! All that power's got to your head, and now you're nothing more than-"  
  
"Aw, zip it, Shard! My main mission is to finish off your "Champion," Takeru Takaishi. I don't know why He chose him after seeing how much of a weakling he turned out to be. Not only am I going to be paid very well by Matt Ishida, but Mazarkal has promised me more power than I ever dreamed! AND NOTHING'S GOING TO STOP ME FROM GETTING WHAT I WANT!" Ken stated.  
  
Shard's head lowered.  
  
".... I will pray for your soul," Shard whispered. In a flash, Shard vanished into the shadows. After Shard disappeared from the abandoned sector of Tokyo, Ken began to head for his next destination: The Mt. Fuji Pub.  
  
"I think it's time for me to pay Davis a visit. Oh Daaaaavisssssss.... It's time to plaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyy...."  
  
  
  
... to be continued  
  
  
  



	12. The Storm is Coming

In the Kamiya Mansion's dojo, two Kendo artists have just finished their training for the day in the art of The Way Of The Sword. When they faced each other, the practitioners made a small bow to each other and knelt down on their knees. They put down their kendo sticks to their right side and carefully removed their helmets. One was revealed to be a beautiful, young woman with short, dark-brown hair while the other turned out to be a lovely woman with long, light-brown hair. Both women let out a sigh of relief when the Kendo session was finally over.  
  
"Kari, you're doing better and better every day. I'm proud of you," Mimi said.  
  
"Thanks, Mimi Sensei. T.K. isn't the only one who can handle a sword, you know? Speaking of which, I'm glad T.K. is getting much better from that duel he had with Ken. I think I should pay him a visit in his room," Kari suggested.  
  
"You know that's forbidden, Kari. Tai said that nobody, and absolutely NOBODY is allowed to disturb T.K. or himself," Mimi stated.  
  
"Oh, I can't believe this! I haven't seen T.K. in a week now! This is driving me NUTS! What in the world are those two doing that they claim is so damn important?" the frustrated Kari asked.  
  
"I... I don't know, Kari. With the exception of Izzy, Tai refused to tell anybody what plans he's got for T.K. Not even Izzy would crack. This is driving me out of mind, too," Mimi said.  
  
This made Kari raise a brow.  
  
"Mimi... are you saying that you got a thing for my big brother?" Kari asked  
  
Mimi let out a gasp. As her cheeks blushed a light red, Mimi laughed nervously.  
  
"Well... yeah, you can say that. I felt so sorry for Tai when he mentioned he lost someone very dear to him. If only... if only there's something I can do for him," Mimi said. Kari knew immediately who Mimi was talking about, and that made her heart grow sick when she remembered how Tai's very soul shattered from his love's demise.  
  
"You should go after him, Mimi. If you love him so much, then go for it! Seize the day! Besides, I saw signs of how bad Tai wants you ever since you started working for him..."  
  
Mimi's eyes widened, REALLY widened.  
  
"What do you mean?" Mimi asked slowly. Kari let out a giggle.  
  
"I saw how Tai was checking you out every time you were at his office. Every time you got your back to him, his puppy-dog eyes kept pointing at your behind. I knew exactly what Tai wanted every time you bent over to pick up his files he 'purposely' dropped," Kari said. Mimi turned her face away and felt more blood rush to her face.  
  
"Hey, Mimi. You helped me learn the art of Kendo. So why don't I help you? No offense, but most of the time you look like a stick in the mud. With my help, I'm going to make you so irrestable that not even Tai's will can hold him back! When he gets a good look at you... he's gonna go absolutely nuts!"  
  
Slowly, Mimi's eyes returned to Kari.   
  
"Kari, you're such a good friend! Thank you so much!"  
  
"Sure thing, Mimi! What are friends for? When we get cleaned up, I'm gonna teach you how to really make guys drool. Your first lesson will be how to dance when swinging around a pole..."  
  
****  
  
"Yes, Mr. Ishida? No, I didn't get any word yet from Ken Ichijouji. Yes. Yes, I understand. No problem, boss." Davis hung up the phone and returned to his duties in keeping the Mt. Fuji Pub in shape. Knowing that everybody left the Pub at 1 in the morning, Davis let out a sigh as grabbed a broom and started sweeping.  
  
"I hope he's all right. I'd be damned to Hell if anything happened to T.K. He's like a brother to me," Davis said to himself. Davis continued to sweep the floor when suddenly, he noticed a shadow in a dark corner of the Pub. Davis's heart jumped a bit when he noticed the unknown shadow, but he later on let out a sigh of relief.  
  
"Man, T.K. You really had me there. You didn't think you were going to scare me the same way you did before, didja?" Davis asked, followed by a laugh.  
  
No answer came from the shadow.  
  
"Uh... T.K.? Hey, what's the matter? Cat's got your tongue or somethin'?"  
  
Still, no answer. Davis started to feel his palms get sweaty.  
  
"Look, T.K. This isn't funny anymore. SAY SOMETHING, DAMNIT!"  
  
A pair of blood-red eyes glowed out of the shadow. Davis' heart began to run cold as he looked into the eyes of the trespasser.  
  
".... I'm sending you straight to Hell right now, Ishida slime...."  
  
Davis was frozen with fear as he continued to look into the red eyes that shined the darkness away in such an unholy manner. A purplish blue-haired man stepped out of the dark corner as his red eyes continued to stare right through the fear-struck Davis. As Ken closed his eyes and opened them again, his eyes returned to normal.  
  
"Soooo.... I see you wanted me dead, you little piece of shit. Izzy may have been the one who squeezed the trigger, but it was one of YOUR shotguns they used on me! Did you really think that little toy could snuff me out that easily? DID YOU?!?" Ken shouted.  
  
Finally breaking from the fear, Davis ran to his personal shotgun that was hidden underneath the bar. As he was a few feet away from his weapon, Davis saw a blur speed right in front of him and block his way.  
  
The blur turned out to be Ken.  
  
"What? How did you do that? It's as though... you were moving at the speed of sound. But how-" Davis' question was cut off abruptly by Ken's right cross to Davis' skull. Davis felt his powerful blow and got launched right over the bar and crashed into one of the tables. Davis's head was ringing with great pain, but Davis slowly got up to face the King of Blades. Breathing heavily, Davis put up his fists.  
  
"... come on... I'm not afraid of you...." Davis whispered. Ken leaped right over the bar and walked to face T.K.'s best friend. With hands behind his back, Ken let out a smile.  
  
"Do you really think a man of your stature can really measure up to a warrior of my level? Face it, Davis: you're an insect compared to the likes of me! I was given powers not even dreamed of, and nobody's gonna stop me from getting what I want!" Ken annouced.  
  
Tired of listening to Ken, Davis unleashed a right hook to Ken's skull. Right before Davis' fist could connect to the target, Davis's head whipped back and his mouth let a stream of blood fly out of his mouth. The force sent Davis into a wall, causing a major crashing thud to echo thorughout the pub. Davis saw a black blur heading right for him. Davis tried to move away, but he was too late. The blur pummeled Davis' ribs, stomach and head with tremendous speed and power. Davis was helpless to do anything, for the blur was attacking him with unbelievable speed. As the blur halted its attack, Davis got a good look at the blur turning back to Ken. Ken grabbed Davis by the shirt and pinned him to the wall with his left hand, pinning him as though he was less than 20 pounds. With one good eye, Davis lifted his head up and took a good look at his nemesis.  
  
What he saw Ken do next wasn't good, not good at all. Ken opened his trench coat and revealed over 2 dozen daggers holstered all over his chest! With a smile, Ken drew out one of his daggers.  
  
"I got three rules you should have followed, little man. Rule # 1..." Ken grabbed Davis' right arm and raised it parallel to the floor. Ken rammed the dagger right through Davis' wrist and had it pinned to the wall. Davis' scream spread like wildfire throughout the bar as he felt the sharp metal eating through his flesh, bones and veins.   
  
"... never stick your nose into another assassin's business. Rule # 2..." Davis tried to grab the dagger, but Ken grabbed his other arm and put it on the wall, raising it parallel to the floor. Ken grabbed another dagger and slammed it right through Davis' other wrist, having Davis nearly crucified. Davis screamed from the other dagger, wiggling his body around has he tried hopelessly to get his arms free from Ken's blades.  
  
"... never get caught in sticking your nose in an assassin's business. And Rule # 3..." Seeing Davis won't be going anywhere, Ken drew out the biggest dagger of all. The blade was nicely curved, and the handle was designed to be a beautiful woman in a dress.  
  
"... don't ever forget Rule #1 and Rule #2. For if you do, you're fucked." In a flash, Ken rammed his enormous dagger right through Davis' heart and right into the other side of the wall. Ken smiled as he heard Davis' breastbone crunch from Ken's mighty blade. In an instant, Davis' heart stopped beating against the blade, and everything before Davis' eyes turned black.  
  
Ken smiled and did his best to memorize every agonizing moment Davis went through before he had him meet his maker. Letting out a chuckle, Ken took out a note and placed it on the wall next to Davis' head. With his fourth dagger, Ken ran it right through the note and into the wall. As his smile faded away, Ken left.  
  
The dagger's note read:  
  
'We're sick of letting you Ishidas breathe the same air we do. If you think you guys are truly Yakuza, then meet us at the Musashi Steel Factory. We're going to enjoy sending all to Hell.'  
  
  
-The Kamiya Clan  
  
  
  
.... to be continued  



	13. The Thunder Starts Rollin'

"Now I'm really pissed! This time, TAI HAS GONE TOO FAR!"  
  
At the Mt. Fuji Pub, the note stabbed next to Davis' body was gripped very firmly in the hand of Matt Ishida, warlord of the Ishida Clan. Grinding his teeth, Matt overturned a nearby table and smashed it into dozens of pieces.  
  
"Mr. Ishida, sir, please calm down. Being in the stage you're in right now won't be of any benefit to any of us-"  
  
Joe's words were silenced by Matt's back-fist to Joe's nose. Joe whipped back and covered his bloodstained nose, feeling his tears forming from the hit.  
  
"Don't you tell me about how I'm suppose to feel, ya piece of shit. If Tai is eager to die so soon, then so be it! Joe... everyone... we're going to the Musashi Steel Factory! If it's a fight they want, it's a fight they'll get! There are to be no survivors. That's the number one priority!"  
  
Knowing that it's time to go, one of his men put a brown trench coat on Matt's shoulders. Another of his goons opened the door for his warlord. Just when Matt was about to get out the door, Joe called to him. Feeling a bit annoyed by Joe's voice, Matt turned his attention to him.  
  
"Mr. Ishida, what about Davis? Surely, we can't leave him like that," Joe said, motioning to Davis who was still crucified by the blades. Matt only snorted.  
  
"That shell will only slow us down. We have better things to do than getting rid of some stupid carcass. Come on. It's time to stain the Factory with Kamiya blood..."  
  
When Matt Ishida and his men walked out of the Pub, Matt crumpled the note and threw it away.  
  
  
****  
  
  
Totally exhausted, Tai slowly walked right into his bedroom. Feeling almost all his energy sapped right out of his body, Tai removed his sweaty shirt right off and collapsed on his bed. Lying on his back, Tai closed his eyes and took a breather.  
  
"Wow. T.K. is definitely a fast learner. I'm lucky to be alive. Now that he's fully prepared, Ken's gonna be shaking in his booties when he takes a new look at the new, improved Angel of Death," Tai said to himself, taking a few breaths. Tai heard the door close suddenly and quickly got up from his back. When he saw who came right in, Tai let out a sigh and wiped the sweat off his face.  
  
"Mimi. Man, I thought you were somebody else. Next time, try your best not to come in so abruptly, okay?" Tai asked. Wearing her business dress and a pair of glasses as she always does, Mimi walked to Tai and sat next to him on his bed.  
  
"Is there anything I can get you, Tai? Some water, perhaps?"  
  
"Sure, Mimi. Thanks. Rather than waste a trip, can you get me that bottle of water near ya?"  
  
Mimi snatched the bottle of ice-cold water Tai was talking about and politely handed it to him. After gulped some water down, he poured some of it down his face.  
  
Mimi hid her smile when she saw how the water made his chest shine. To get her mind off of Tai's features, Mimi brought up a subject.  
  
"Tai, what did you and T.K. do in your private training chambers anyway? You look as though T.K. wiped the floor with you," Mimi asked.  
  
"You wouldn't believe it even if you saw it with your own eyes, Mimi. I knew he was the one. When we trained, I was able to help T.K. unleash his true powers. It... it was amazing! When I was pushing him to the limits, a strange light shined right out of his chest. Right after that, it was a no-contest. T.K. finally did it! He reached the next level..."  
  
Unable to fight it off, Mimi eyed ever inch of Tai's sweaty body from the hip up. Tai's body was chiseled like an Olympian, hard muscles shining from the sweat he let out when training T.K. Mimi felt the urge to run her delicate hands all around Tai's chest and relish feeling how smooth and solid he was. Mimi began to scoot closer to Tai.  
  
Tai didn't notice.  
  
"Tai... I don't think your workout is done yet. I'll give you a real good workout..." That made Tai give Mimi a strange look. It was the 'what is she up to?' look, raising one of his brows at her. Mimi looked away a bit and smiled nervously.  
  
(Come on, Mimi. You can do it! Don't forget what Kari taught you...) Mimi said to herself.  
  
Mimi scooted even closer to Tai, close to the point of having their hips touch.  
  
"Mimi... are you feeling all right?" Tai asked with a bit of shakiness. Mimi felt a bit of heat rush to her cheeks when she looked into his eyes.  
  
"You know, Tai. I can make the night really special for ya. Rather than go to bed... how about you... and me..."  
  
Mimi brought her sweet lips to Tai's ears and started whispering into it. Tai listened to every word Mimi whispered, and his mouth dropped wide open. Tai began to feel his pulse beat against his throat as Mimi whispered more nasty methods of what she tends to do to him tonight. Tai started to breathe heavily, more heavily than how he took a breather from T.K.'s training. When Mimi got into even greater detail, Mimi unzipped Tai's zipper and reached through. Tai shut his eyes and whipped his head back as he felt her soft hand digging down his underwear and starting to stroke his meat. The nastier Mimi spoke, the faster she stroke Tai's equipment.  
  
Mimi slowly took her hand out of Tai's pants, feeling she needed to take a breather of her own. Tai slowly opened his shocked eyes at Mimi, not believing how naughty she's been behaving that night. When Mimi took off her glasses and gazed into her boss' eyes, Mimi flicked her little tongue at him.  
  
"And I say it with sincerity..." Mimi asked teasingly.  
  
Tai let out a flirtatious growl at his secretary. When Mimi giggled, Tai got on top of Mimi and pressed his lips against hers. Mimi didn't bother to fight it off Tai's aggression. Mimi loved feeling Tai's lips and his weight on her body, feeling his hard muscles press against her soft features. When Tai broke away from the kiss, Tai slowly started to slither down to Mimi's legs. Having a good idea of what Tai wants, Mimi blushed extremely hard, closed her eyes and licked the top of her lips. Tai reached up her skirt and started to pull her pink panties down...  
  
  
****  
  
  
"Kari, you should have stayed with Tai! All I have to do is check on Davis!"  
  
"No way I'm leaving your side, T.K.! No offense to my brother, but I don't feel safe enough with him or his men, knowing that Ken can finish them all off with one stroke!"  
  
Kari held onto T.K.'s waist with all her strength when she felt him put the Ninja cycle at full throttle. T.K. and Kari blasted through the streets of Tokyo at maximum overdrive. If a pedestrian saw them pass by, he'd think they were trying to break the sound barrier.  
  
A half hour later, T.K. and Kari finally got to the Mt. Fuji Pub. When T.K. was about to turn the knob to the pub, he froze from touching the knob. As he breath trembled, he slowly took his hand away from the knob.  
  
"T.K., what's the matter?"  
  
"Something's wrong, Kari. There was a dark presence here. Davis.... oh no..."  
  
Not wanting to take a chance, T.K. popped a gun out of sleeve and rammed right through the window. Shaking off some of the glass shards, T.K. whipped to the sides and pointed the gun at anything that looked suspicious.  
  
What he saw next was something he was not prepared for. Right before his eyes was a dark-haired, young man with closed eyes and three daggers pinning him to the wall. One in each wrist, the third right in his heart.  
  
The very sight of Davis killed in such an inhuman manner made his blood run cold.  
  
A scream blasted through the pub, causing T.K.'s ears to nearly pop. T.K. whipped his head around, seeing Kari horrified by the sickening sight. T.K. rushed to Kari and held onto her so her eyes couldn't see the body. When he felt her body tremble, T.K. gently rubbed her back with one of his free hands.  
  
"...it's Ken that did this, isn't it?" Kari asked shakingly.  
  
"Yeah... it is. That bastard is going to pay for what he did to Davis! He was one of my best friends! He..."  
  
There was something that caught T.K.'s eye that made his blood run even colder. The one thing he couldn't get his eye off of was the dagger that got rammed through Davis's heart.  
  
The dagger with the shape of a beautiful woman as the handle.  
  
Slowly, T.K. let go of Kari and started to back away from Davis' body. Step by step, T.K.'s heart pounded harder and harder to the point of nearly ripping right out of his chest. With eyes of terror, T.K. covered his mouth and started to hyperventilate. Kari rubbed his shoulders to calm him down.  
  
"Calm down, T.K. Here, let me help you get some air-"  
  
"KARI! YOU HAVE TO CALL 911 RIGHT NOW!"  
  
"But what's the point? Davis is already dead, and all that'll do is stir up trouble for us."  
  
"Kari.... Davis is not dead."  
  
  
  
... to be continued  
  



	14. Down Comes The Rain...

"Ooooooohhhhh Taaaaiiiiii.... it's so damn big! Harder, baby! HARDER!"  
  
"Your wish is myyyyyy command!"  
  
Mimi was on her hands and knees, feeling Tai's thrusts send awesome electricity throughout her entire body. Having the bed shake out of control, Tai gently clutched onto Mimi's nice breasts as he rested his face on her back and continued to love her from behind. The harder and faster he thrusted, the louder they moaned.  
  
Izzy busted the door wide open and ran right in.  
  
"TAI! IT'S TERRIBLE! THE ISHIDA CLAN HAS.... uhhhh... ehehehe....I'll wait outside," Izzy said. Quietly, Izzy closed the door on his way out.  
  
  
*****  
  
  
"He did WHAT?!" Tai asked, almost finished dressing up. Mimi was dressing up in Tai's bathroom, still embarrassed that Izzy caught them doing it without even realizing the intrusion. Besides, doing it with Tai was so damn good for her that not even a man screaming his head off would distract her.  
  
"It's true, Tai. Matt and his entire Ishida Clan stormed the Musashi Steel Factory. Most of our workers there were shot right where they stood, sir. I... I don't know if there were any survivors," Izzy said. After giving Tai the lowdown, Tai wore a face of stone. After a slight pause, Tai marched right to his personal cabinet. Tai swung the doors to his cabinet wide open, revealing the most lethal firearms and swords that could make the meer sight of their bearer make a terrorist piss in his pants.  
  
Tai armed himself with two .45 caliber handguns, a pair of submachine guns, a belt with 8 handgun and submachine gun magazines, 10 grenades, and a 4-foot long red-handled katana. When Tai slid his katana into the scabbard, he turned his eyes to Izzy.  
  
Izzy knew that look in Tai's eyes, and that made his knees tremble. It was that look that said that Death was heading their way. The question in Izzy's mind was whose side will Death be on?  
  
"... it's time, Izzy. Round up the entire pack. We're gonna sink our fangs and once and for all drink down Ishida blood. I... I will finally have my revenge......"  
  
Before Tai was about to leave the room, he heard Mimi screech to a halt right at his side.  
  
"Tai... are you really going out there? You... you still might need some rest after.... well, you know," Mimi said, blushing. Tai hid his blush from Izzy and turned his full attention to Mimi.  
  
"Don't you worry, Mimi. I still got some fightin' left in me. I'll be back. I promise," Tai said.  
  
Catching him off guard, Mimi grabbed him by the shirt and pulled his lips to hers. She didn't just kiss him. She really, REEAAALLLYY kissed him. Eventually, Mimi's lips broke away from Tai's.  
  
"For good luck, my love," Mimi said.  
  
"Arigatou, Mimi-chan. Ai Shiteru..."  
  
After saying their goodbyes, Mimi watched Tai round up his troops to get on their cycles and prepare for the carnage. Resting on the edge of the door, Mimi felt her eyes begin to water.  
  
"I... I can't stand the thought of losing you, Tai. Remember your promise... remember..."  
  
  
*****  
  
  
Quickly yet gently, T.K. was in the middle of removing the daggers that pinned Davis to the wall. Kari held onto Davis' body to make sure he wouldn't go 'plop' on the floor. When T.K. removed the second dagger from Davis' wrist, he and Kari kept Davis from falling by having each of his arms rest on their backs.  
  
"Kari, let's place him on the floor."  
  
"Okay, T.K. The ambulance should be on their way. T.K., how in the world can Davis be still alive? I swear, his heart stopped by the time that dagger ate through."  
  
T.K. was hoping he won't have to explain it to Kari. Her question made his blood run a major chill, remembering that demonic weapon still embedded in Davis' chest. Gently, they lied Davis flat on his back on the floor.  
  
"... it's called the Gorgon's Kiss. Legend had it that back in the Medieval Ages, dark wizards created such filthy weapons to send anyone to Hell, even the innocent."  
  
"Why in God's name would they create such things?" Kari asked, shocked.  
  
".... just for the pleasure of it. There's only one way to bring him back."  
  
Kari felt her heart sink from what T.K. informed her.  
  
"Kari... I need you to wait outside. What's about to happen may be too much for you to see. Please, Kari. I won't be far. If there's any trouble out there, I'll come for you in no time. I don't want you to see what I'm about to do."  
  
After feeling her body tremble a bit, Kari did what T.K. asked. Seeing Kari outside, T.K. got a good grip on the dagger known as Gorgon's Kiss.  
  
"Hang on, Davis. What you're about to feel won't be comfortable. It's time to come back from Hell..."  
  
With a swift motion, T.K. drew the dagger right out of Davis' body. Davis' body started to shake violently, making T.K. force himself to pin his arms down to the floor. The deep hole in Davis' heart started to close, making his heart start beating once again. When the entire chest miraculously closed, Davis' eyes flashed wide open. Davis began to make mumbling noise, shaking even more violently. With tears coming out of his eyes, Davis screamed like never before.  
  
"DAVIS! JUST HOLD ON! HELP IS ON THE WAY!"  
  
But that didn't help soothe Davis' pain he went through from beyond. Despite returning to the world of the living, Davis continued to scream... and scream... and scream.....  
  
  
*****  
  
  
Still trembling, Davis was being carried off by stretcher onto the ambulance by a pair of paramedics. His wrists were heavily bandaged to make sure he won't be losing too much blood. Kari held onto T.K. as they watched Davis being carried out of the Fuji Pub.  
  
When Davis and his paramedics were about to pass T.K. and Kari, Davis immediately grabbed onto T.K.'s sleeve. The paramedics tried to hold him down, but that didn't prevent him from what he wanted to tell the Angel of Death.  
  
"T....K.... Mu.... Musashi Steel Fac.... Factory! The Clans... shhhh....showdown.....a set up... King of .... BLADES!" T.K.'s eyes widened from the message. Feeling he got the message through, Davis released T.K. and let the paramedics proceed to put him on the ambulance.  
  
T.K. tightened his fist.  
  
"Ken.... that BASTARD! He set the whole damn thing up! Kari, stay with Mimi so I can give Tai a hand-"  
  
"No way, T.K.! We're in on this together! I won't lose my brother at the hands of that evil monster!"  
  
"... okay, you have me convinced. IT'S TIME TO END THIS!"  
  
When the couple hopped onto T.K.'s black Kawasaki Ninja cycle, they heard someone shouting for them.  
  
Who they saw was a beautiful purple-haired woman running their way. When she faced them, the woman stopped right in front of them and was huffing for breath before she could utter a word.  
  
"Is... is Davis all right? I tried to call him at the Pub, but he never answered. Please tell me he's all right," the woman pleaded.   
  
"I don't believe we've met before," Kari said.  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry. My name is Yolei. I'm Davis' girlfriend."  
  
The three heard Davis screaming for the woman, begging her to come to him.  
  
"YOLEI! YOLEI, WHERE ARE YOU?"  
  
"Davis? D... DAVIS!"  
  
Yolei ran immediately inside the ambulance. With streams of tears coming down his cheeks, Davis held onto his beloved. After seeing Yolei stroking Davis' hair and holding him like a child, the ambulance doors were shut and the ambulance vroomed right off to the nearest hospital. Seeing Davis was all right (physically, at least), T.K. kicked the engine right in. Within seconds, T.K. and Kari were at maximum overdrive for the Musashi Steel Factory!  
  
"Ken.... I will be the man to send you forever to Hell! And I got the tools to do it..."  
  
  
  
... to be continued.  
  
  
  
  
  



	15. LIGHTNING STRIKES!

The Musashi Steel Factory was the symbol not only of the hard-working spirit in all of Tokyo but also the symbol of power. Any clan that claims the Factory has proven to always to be the dominant one, for the only way to claim it was through sheer battle. No bright lights ever shine through the dark factory. The only way anyone can get through the behemoth was by using the flying sparks and molten metal in the steel cauldrons that let out an orange glow.  
  
Now the Steel Factory has been reduced to nothing more than a slaughterhouse.  
  
"No, please don't kill me! I didn't do anyth-"  
  
The steel worker's words were forever silenced by the cold blade of an Ishida clansman named Lee. When he grabbed the worker from behind by the hair and used his tanto (dagger) to slit his throat in a split second, he dropped the victim's body like a sack of potatoes and let the body's blood spread through the steel floor like spilt milk to soak the body's face. Some of the Ishidas laughed and clapped their hands, finding Lee's killing methods to be clean and with style. A few of the other Ishida clansmen further back in the 50-man crowd looked down and shook their heads, sickened by the slaughter.   
  
Armed to the teeth, the Ishida Clan left no steel worker alive, leaving their bodies either with deep cuts through their hearts or bullet holes through their skulls and torsos. Some of the steel workers' bodies dangled on the stair rails, showing how they hopelessly tried to run from the bloodthirsty gangsters. Those closest to the steel cauldrons ended up with no heads on their shoulders.  
  
Seeing the last of the workers dead, Matt Ishida took out a cigarette and had it lit by one of his men. Feeling his heart sickened by the onslaught, Joe marched up to his boss to give him a piece of his mind.  
  
"Mr. Ishida, this is pointless! We could have at least driven the workers out of the factory, but we didn't have to **kill** them! Many of them are hard-working _family men_, for God's sake! This time, you've gone too-"  
  
Matt, as quick as a cobra, grabbed Joe by the throat. Joe couldn't utter a single word, feeling Matt's grip tightening and his windpipe closing. Joe grabbed Matt's hand and tried to break free, but Matt's grip has proven to be too strong. Matt forced Joe to get on his knees and look him square in the eyes.  
  
"Anyone associated with Tai Kamiya has automatically tainted their blood with Kamiya influence. And anyone under such influence shall wither and die! Never question my authority ever again, Joe Kido," Matt whispered. One of Matt's men named Lee walked up to his warlord.  
  
"That's the last of the workers, Mr. Ishida. There's no doubt the Kamiyas will come soon," Lee said. Matt released Joe's throat and shook his hand a little as though he put his hand on a dirty dog. On his knees, Joe gasped for air.  
  
"Excellent work, Lee. Let's take our positions and wait for the Kamiya Clan to come right in. When you see them in sight, mow them all down," Matt Ishida commanded. When Joe finally got some air and stood up, the Ishida Clan started to scatter, looking for the right spot to hide and take the Kamiyas by surprise.  
  
Suddenly, a speeding bullet pierced right through the back of an Ishida's skull. Right before his body dropped to the steel floor, a large stream of blood splattered out of his skull, going with the flow of the bullet. All of the Ishida clansmen and their warlord whipped their heads to where the gunshot came from. When they saw who pulled the trigger, all of their blood ran as cold as ice.  
  
Right before their eyes, Tai Kamiya and his entire clan stood before the Ishidas. The Kamiyas were outnumbered 2 to 1, but their firepower made up for their lack of numbers. Many of Tai's men were armed with semi-automatics and shotguns, aiming their weapons at their enemies and ready to fill the Ishidas with lead. With eyes of pure rage and eagerness, Tai kept his gun pointed to where he shot an Ishida at point blank, watching the smoke flow out of the gun's nozzle. With eyes of stone, Tai shifted his attention to the warlord of the Ishidas.  
  
"I'm gonna use your freakin' head for a bowling ball," Tai rasped.  
  
When Tai fired another shot at another hopeless Ishida at point blank, the rest of his clan opened fire with their leader. Dozens of Ishidas scattered everywhere, finding a good hiding spot from the Kamiyas' rampage. Some of them weren't so fortunate as they got reduced to torn flesh by enemy fire. Matt leapt behind his own hiding spot, followed by a huge barrage of bullets richeting from the metal inches away from his head. Finally regaining his focus, Matt whipped out his shotgun.  
  
"PARTY TIME, BOYS!" Matt screamed. When many of the Ishidas finally found their hiding spots, they fired back at the Kamiyas. The firing from the Ishidas wasn't as frightening, but they have proven their point that none of them were going down that easily. By the time a few of the Kamiyas got their head shot clean off, all of the other Kamiyas immediately leapt into their own hiding spots.  
  
For minutes, the clans were trading fire. Every one of them had to pop their heads out and blast anything that moved. Those who didn't have good enough reflexes ended up with enormous holes in their skulls and parts of their brains sapping out.   
  
A good number of Kamiyas fell to their enemies, but more of the Ishidas were sent to hell. That was due to Tai and his grenades. With good grenade tossing, the Kamiya warlord reduced over a dozen Ishidas to burnt flesh. Tai tossed his last grenade at a crowd of Ishidas in sight. The explosion was enormous, consuming 4 Ishidas with its unforgiving fire and blowing a few others into little pieces. The 4 that were consumed ran like crazy, screaming and begging anyone to put the fire out.   
  
None of the Kamiyas had any mercy to shoot the 4 blazing men down.  
  
The Ishidas weren't doing so bad, either. They may not be as vicious as the Kamiyas when it comes to firepower, but their accuracy has provend to be frightening. Their warlord almost never missed a target, letting his shotgun rip anyone within range. He smiled to himself when he watched his eighth victim get knocked into a wall and die from one of his shells.  
  
_(You're next, Tai...)_  
  
On the Kamiyas' side, Tai and Izzy shared the same hiding spot as they blasted as many Ishidas as they can. When Izzy fired on his fifth victim, he realized that it was his last shell. Izzy let out a curse and tossed his shotgun away.  
  
"Hey, Izzy! Use this!" Tai shouted, tossing his submachine gun to his friend. Thanking Tai, Izzy opened fire at the Ishidas while he still kept his head in hiding.  
  
  
---------------------------  
  
  
High above the battlefield, Ken Ichijouji, the King of Blades, leaned on a rail and watched the battle rage on as he smiled and licked his lips, savoring every moment of bloodshed.  
  
"Hmhmhmhmmmmm. Now this is what I call beautiful. Kinda like watching the Macy's Fireworks Spectacular, only this time it's taking place below. All I have to do is let those pathetic bastards tear each other apart. When they're out of the way, I will have all of Tokyo to myself!" Ken said to himself.  
  
"You're just as hopeless as ever, King of Blades."  
  
Ken quickly turned his attention to who spoke to him. High above the dark assassin was the Angel of Death, balancing on a rail and folding his arms as though he has not a hint of worry. T.K. leapt 5 levels down and smoothly landed on the rail Ken was leaning on. T.K. got off the rail and faced his nemesis.  
  
"It's been a long time since we had our last showdown, King of Blades," T.K. said quietly. Ken smiled to himself, putting his hands in his black trenchcoat's pockets.  
  
"Yeah, I remember. I remember beating the living shit out of you without even breaking a sweat! But somehow, you've changed on the inside. What did you do, seek help from a great master or something?" Ken asked in a mocking way.  
  
"Well, something like that. How about I show you what I've learned?" T.K. slowly took off his own trenchcoat and tossed it away. The Angel of Death had no guns on him at all. Feeling the force within, T.K.'s hair started to flow up towards ceiling. As his energy within started to build, T.K. put his fists to the sides of his body and had his palm-sides face the ceiling. Huge streams of blue electricity started to flow out of T.K.'s heart and dance around his black attire as his well-chiseled muscles began to grow.  
  
Ken slowly started to tremble. Slowly, Ken backed away from the Angel of Death. With wide eyes, Ken watched T.K. build his inner power more and more as the Angel of Death grinded his teeth and felt his sleeping power awaken.  
  
"This time, Ken, you're gonna be dancing to _my _song now. Do you think you'll survive the dance?" T.K. asked, smiling as he felt the blue electricity spark on his fists and his muscles bulging against his shirt.  
  
Ken let out a smile. A mean smile.  
  
"Oh, how I've waited for this moment," Ken said to himself. Bringing his fists close to his chest, Ken felt his own power awakening. As his hair slowly flow up from his energy, huge streams of red electricity sparked out of his fists and danced around his own body. Ken let out a growl as his muscle mass started to grow. Ken's shirt couldn't hold in the huge muscles he was building as it started to tear.  
  
With great coolness and blue electricity still flowing, T.K. folded his arms and watched.  
  
"Takeru, this isn't about the money anymore. This time, it's just for the bloodlust! Nothing excites me more than pulverizing my enemies and proving that I'm at the top of the game! And I'm gonna prove it again tonight!!" Ken stated, getting into his fighting stance and prepared to rip T.K. into pieces.  
  
Coolly, T.K. faced the dark monster and got into his Jeet Kune Do stance.  
  
"Monsters like you are what make the world so damn sickening. I swear to the heavens... **_I WILL STOP YOU!!_**"  
  
  
  
  
...... to be continued.  
  
  
  
  
Phew! This is gonna get ugly, boys and girls! It's time I took the battles to a whole new level! Man, I can't wait for you to read and review what I have in store for the DigiDestined in my dark world later on, especially for Tai and Matt!! (no, there'll be no Taito crap that's been going on in so many fics.) I knoowwww you're gonna dig this!  



	16. The Way of The Gun

Feeling his awakened power surging through his veins, T.K. sprinted towards Ken and delivered a thunderous right fist to Ken's face. Ken's head whipped to the side, feeling the fury of T.K.'s fist and his own feet leaving the floor. Ken barely landed back on his feet, feeling blood trickling down his mouth. Refusing to let up on the dark assassin, T.K. threw a series of lightning-fast jabs and hooks to Ken's head. Ken could do very little to block T.K.'s fists. Every hit Ken took drove him backwards, driving him down the catwalk.   
  
When T.K. threw a left hook, Ken dodged it and caught it with his own left arm. Ken delivered a left knee to T.K.'s stomach. T.K. let out a grunt, feeling the power behind Ken's counter-attack. Ken raised his right arm and delivered a hammer-blow down T.K.'s back, having him crash face-first into the steel floor. Ken lifted T.K. up by the neck and threw him into a steel wall, which was 20 feet away. Slowly, T.K. got up and tried to regain his posture and shake off the impact. When T.K.'s eyes opened, he saw Ken's fist heading right for his face. Eyes widening, T.K. dodged Ken's fist as it rams right through the steel wall where T.K.'s head once was.  
  
When Ken took his arm out of the wall, T.K. delivered a punishing right fist into Ken's ribs. Seeing Ken bending his body sideward and wincing in pain, T.K. threw a left hook and a right. The right hook blurred Ken's vision a bit and had him turn a 360 degrees. Seeing Ken out of focus and staggering backwards, T.K. shuffled towards his mortal enemy and side-kicked Ken's chest. The kick was so powerful that it sent Ken flying 70 mph and 15 feet across into a steel wall, almost right through it! With a few short breaths and seeing how deep Ken got embedded into the wall, T.K. felt he got the job done.  
  
However, something made T.K.'s blood chill. To T.K.'s surprise, Ken popped himself out of the wall and cracked his neck a bit. Rubbing his jaw, Ken found it hard to believe that that was really T.K. who was showing a lot of mettle. Last time, T.K. was almost a weakling compared to the King of Blades when they faced one another at an abandoned section of Tokyo. Now Ken's experiencing a nightmare come true.  
  
He was actually meeting his match.  
  
Smiling to himself and wiping the blood off the edge of his mouth, Ken patted off the dust from himself.  
  
"Not bad, T.K. You're far stronger than the last time we met. But I got bad news for you, little man. You see, when we last fought, I was using only 50% of my powers. This time, THE GLOVES ARE OFF!"  
  
Ken roared as he summoned his powers to climb to the next level. Red electricity started to intensify around Ken's very body. T.K. stood his ground, refusing to let Ken have the satisfaction of seeing fear on his face. Ken's trenchcoat and shirt got torn off by his inner power as it continued to grow. Ken's eyes glowed ghost-white as he grinded his teeth and felt his powers rushing through his veins like runaway trains going through the tunnels.  
  
What shocked T.K. the most was something totally unthinkable. Right before T.K.'s eyes, the skin on Ken's right arm started to get torn up, looking as though something inside him was yearning to come out. Like wet paper, Ken's bloodstained skin from his arm peeled off and fell to the ground.  
  
T.K.'s heart pounded in horror when he saw what happened to Ken's arm. As Ken wore an evil grin, his arm was no longer that of flesh and bone. Now his arm was that of pure metal! The arm was shaped like a that of a muscular human arm, but it shined with fascination. When Ken flexed his new arm towards T.K., crude blades started popping out of it.  
  
"It's time to dance to a new song, little man..." After he finished that sentenced, Ken opened his mouth and filled his belly with pure laughter. As the laughter continued on, the rest of his body started to fall apart. Even his face began to peel away.  
  
Never feeling so much fear crash down on him, T.K. continued to watch. T.K.'s eyes widened, but not from watching Ken's transformation. Feeling a great sense of calm, T.K. let all his muscles relax.   
  
(What... what's happening to me?)  
  
((Just let it go, T.K. Let go of all doubt, all anger, all fear. Let it go...))  
  
(It's... it's YOU! Shard...)  
  
Hearing his voice, T.K. did what Shard said. Letting the calm cradle him like a baby, T.K.'s eyes started to glow bright-blue. T.K.'s muscle mass started growing yet again. His shirt was torn away from his great muscle mass, making him almost the size of a hulk. Slowly, a pair of white shining wings started to sprout out of his back...  
  
  
******  
  
  
As blood from both clans soaked the steel floor, the Kamiyas and the Ishidas were still trading fire with one another. However, both sides are being more careful than the last time. As the minutes passed by, fewer bodies were falling to the ground from enemy fire. Matt Ishida got the answer for that problem right in his hands.  
  
"Thanks for fetching this for me, Lee. This will have those Kamiya bastards pissing in their pants!" Matt said. Joe and a few other Ishidas nearby trembled from the size of Matt's new weapon. Three hundred rounds per second, every bullet capable of making tough metal as weak as aluminum. Matt felt his body tingle with joy as he caressed his favorite toy that's bound to unleash hell. Lifting the behemoth, Matt stood up and aimed his deadly gatling gun at the Kamiyas! Many of the Kamiyas' jaws dropped.  
  
"Hey, boys! I like to present to you the Dancer! SAY HELLO TO MY LITTLE FRIIIIIIIEEEEND!!" Matt shouted, impersonating Al Pacino as Scarface. Matt pulled the trigger, letting his gatling gun shine up the dim factory with his shells. The first Kamiya to feel its bite got his arms shot off and his heart ripped to little pieces. All of the Kamiyas, even Tai, scattered and tried their best to find a hiding spot. However, even hiding wasn't enough help for the Kamiyas. Some of the Kamiyas hiding behind a huge machine were torn to pieces when Matt's Dancer ripped right through it.  
  
Tai first thought: (We're in deep shit!)  
  
Tai heard something else besides the thousands of rounds from Matt's gatling gun called the Dancer. What he heard was a motorcycle speeding right their way from behind. The cycle sped right by Tai and Izzy, too fast for the naked eye to see who war riding it. On the back of the cycle was a burning rag, burning its way to the gas tank inside. Tai recognized who was riding the bike by what she was wearing.  
  
"KARI!!" Tai screamed.  
  
"Hang on, bro! Leave that bastard to me!" Kari shouted. Kari jumped right off a ramp and had the cycle flying right for Matt. In a split second, Kari leaped off the cycle and landed safely next to her brother and Izzy. The Ishida Warlord didn't expect such desperation from his rival, Tai. Matt saw the cycle flying right for him. Rather than dodge the cycle since he was too anchored by the gun, he aimed the gun and tried to blast it away.  
  
He was too late.  
  
Tai, Izzy, Kari and the other Kamiyas ducked for cover. When they hid their heads under their arms, a fiery explosion erupted much of the Ishidas' side. After seconds passed, Tai and Kari slowly peeked out. What they saw was the Kawasaki Ninja cycle and the Dancer reduced to scrap metal.  
  
There was no sign of Matt's body anywhere.  
  
"Tai, look!" He heard Izzy and saw him pointing a little to the right. What he saw was Matt Ishida, smoking from the explosion and crawling away from the battle zone. Seeing him helpless and weak, Tai aimed his gun right at Matt's back.  
  
"MR. KAMIYA, LOOK OUT!" A young man leaped out and shoved Tai to the ground. Soon after Tai hit the ground, the brunette young man felt a speeding bullet bite through his shoulder. Writhing in pain, the man hit the floor back-first. Izzy saw who shot the man and blew him away with his shotgun. As the carnage between the clans resumed, Tai and Kari knelt down to the wounded man.  
  
"Are... are you all right, sir?" the man asked, wincing a bit from the shot.  
  
"Yeah. What's your name, kid?" Tai asked.  
  
"My name is Takato. I joined your clan just a week ago, sir," Takato said, clutching his wounded shoulder. Tai turned his eyes to Izzy.  
  
"Izzy, tend to this man. As for me, I got a wolf to hunt," Tai said. With slit eyes, Tai cautiously left the battleground, ready to find the wolf he swore to kill.  
  
"Tai, let me come with you! I can-"  
  
"NO, Kari! This is something I have to do....alone." Eventually, the darkness swallowed Tail, protecting him from his enemies and allowing him to slay the beast. Tai Kamiya knew the Musashi Steel Factory better than anyone, and through Tai's mind, finding the Ishida warlord should be a piece of pie. As Tai crept up the steel stairs to find his prey, Tai slowly drew out his lovely katana...  
  
  
  
... to be continued.  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	17. I'll Do Anything For My Love...

Even though warlords are missing in action, the onslaught between the clans continued to rage on. Both sides could smell the rotting carcasses lying next to them, but none of them could do anything to get rid of the putrid smell of dead flesh. Besides, if they tried to toss away their dead comrades, they'll only be open to enemy fire.  
  
Kari was doing her best to keep the enemy at bay with the rest of the Kamiyas while Izzy did what he could to stop the bleeding from Takato's shoulder. Takato let out a grunt when Izzy tightened the wrapping around his wound, but he refused to scream in pain.  
  
"Why the hell did Tai leave like that?! This is not the right time to go AWOL!" Izzy stated, wrapping the last wrap around Takato's wound.  
  
"I'm as clueless as you are, Izzy, but whatever the reason it is, it had better be a good one!" Kari said, firing another round at any visible enemy.  
  
Suddenly, the entire Steel Factory started to rock. The rocking intensified, making both of the clans lose their balance and fighting momentum. Kari stumbled onto her back and lost her gun when a violent quake rushed through the Factory.  
  
"WHAT THE HELL'S GOING ON?!" Kari asked, trying to get back up. As she finally got back on her feet, she saw red and blue lightning spreading throughout the factory, looking like a lightning storm bursted right in. Standing in great awe, the Kamiyas and the Ishidas lowered their weapons and were dazzled by the light-spectacle. Those who were too close to the monstrous electricity were fried beyond recognition.  
  
"... what in Heaven's name is going on here?" Joe asked himself.  
  
Everyone saw where the red and blue lightning was coming from: two bright comets, clashing into each other like a pair of poweful rams fighting for territory! Every clash they made in mid-air shook the entire factory, showing the how much power the blue comet and the red comet possessed. Surging with lightning, the comets were heading straight down the battlefield! Screaming for their lives, the clans started running for cover from the flying pair of annihilators. Carrying Takato, Kari and Izzy jumped for whatever cover they could find, assuming that the impact from the meteor will be equivalent to a laser-guided bomb. One the other side, Joe and Lee leaped for whatever cover was available.  
  
When everybody tucked their heads inbetween their knees and covered their heads with their arms, the comets flew to the battlefield and collided, decimating everything in their 40-yard radius. Everyone felt the tremendous impact, along with a warm light that illuminated from the collision.  
  
Slowly, Kari opened her eyes.  
  
"Are... are we alive?" Kari asked. Izzy and Takato opened their eyes, too.  
  
"Well, it seems like we are," Izzy said. Kari, Izzy, and everyone else in the factory started to hear something from the explosion the comets made. To their ears, it sounded like a fistfight.   
  
Slowly, Kari peeked out of her hiding place to see what was going on. When she took a look at an enormous crater, her eyes widened like crazy. Where the comets collided looked almost like Ground Zero. What Kari and everybody else saw were not two comets but a pair of bizarre warriors trading fists with one another! The incredible clash between the two warriors was so fast that nobody could keep up with how the warriors were fighting. To the naked eye, the two mighty forces were moving like a pair of blurs!  
  
All of a sudden, their fists connected to their enemies' faces at the same time. The black-armored monster's left fist smashed into the blonde warrior's face while the blonde's right fist found its target on the armored one's jaw. Feeling each other's might, both fighters knocked each other away and ended up eating dirt. Shaking off the dizziness, the powerful forces slowly got up from the dirt and faced each other once more, refusing to show how much pain they were in. Both clans were awestruck not only by the appearance of the newcomers, but also from how much magnitude they put in to pulverize each other. The Kamiyas and the Ishidas started to form a ring around the two warriors, but they still stood away from their enemies, whispered among themselves and wondering who the mystical creatures were.  
  
One warrior was a huge, black-armored monster studded with blades on his forearms and long spikes on his shoulders, looking like a hellish knight that came from the Dark Ages. His huge wings on his back were insect-like, looking similar to that of a wasp's. He may be part metal, but his his biceps, thighs and abs still show how ripped the dark one was. His helmet had a razor-sharp horn on the forehead, and his stringy purple hair flowed out behind his neck from underneath the helmet.   
  
The other warrior was a very well-chiseled man with long blonde hair and a pair of metallic wings. Wearing a strange, white outfit with a blue ribbon wrapped around his right arm, he looked like he fell from the Heavens to battle the legions of Hell single-handedly! The angelic wings let out a glimmer, showing not a hint of rust. His helmet covered much of his upper skull, leaving only his lower jaw to be seen. Having no eye-holes, the front of the hemlet had the shape of a crucifix.  
  
"Son of a bitch. They looked like they jumped out of a Digimon card game. Who are those two?" Takato asked.  
  
"Man, I'm just as clueless as you are." Izzy raised a brow at Takato.  
  
"What the heck is Digimon??" Izzy asked.  
  
"Well, you know, it a card game where we get to use these... uhhhhh... Digital Monsters to battle one another. Different Digimons need different tactics to fight and- I'll explain it to you later, " Takato said.  
  
The Ishidas were just as awed as the Kamiyas were.  
  
"Dude, check out that metallic freak. With him on our side, we'd take Tokyo by storm!" Lee said excitedly. Joe started to rub his chin when he set his focus on the black warrior.  
  
"Wait a sec. That heavily armored one looks familiar... HEY, THAT'S KEN!!" Joe shouted.  
  
Kari covered her mouth in shock. Slowly she took a few steps closer to the mighty forces. Izzy quickly grabbed her by the arm.  
  
"Kari, are you nuts? You could get killed!" Izzy said.  
  
"I know who the winged one is," Kari said softly, setting her lovely eyes on the one with angel wings. Izzy slowly took his hand off of Kari's arm.  
  
"Who?" Izzy asked.  
  
".... it's T.K...." Kari whispered, feeling warm to see her soldier of fortune.  
  
Kari and Izzy heard somebody shouting from the other side of the ring. When they heard that person more clearly, he sounded like he was cheering.  
  
"GET 'IM, KEN! BEAT THE SHIT OUT OF THAT BASTARD!" Lee shouted. The adrenaline rush spread through the other Ishidas. Every Ishida clansman (except Joe) raised their fists and gave Ken their support. Refusing to let Ken get his momentum built up by that gang, Kari started to shout as well.  
  
"YOU CAN DO IT, T.K.! TEAR THAT FUCKER'S HEAD OFF!!" Kari screamed. All of the Kamiyas were screaming for blood, screaming for their champion to defeat the King of Blades once and for all!  
  
The great forces felt the support given by the opposing clans, watching the clans transform from gun-toting badasses to their #1 fans.  
  
"/It's too bad you're going to die, T.K. We could have ruled all of Tokyo like gods! You've got to be a really stupid to turn down such an opportunity,/" Ken said with a mechanical voice. Quickly, Ken got into his Eagle-Claw kung-fu stance.  
  
".................." T.K. raised his fists and shuffled around a bit like a Jeet Kune Do fighter, looking similar to Bruce Lee.  
  
"Just shut up and fight," T.K. rasped.  
  
  
--------------------  
  
  
Leaving a trail of blood and smoke, Matt Ishida limped down the halls of Level 3. Glad he was out of the battle, he covered his bloodstained left leg with a rag. When Kari launched T.K.'s motorcycle at Matt, he got out of the monstrous chain gun and started to run off. But when he was only a few feet away from the abandoned weapon, the chain gun exploded from the cycle and blew into thousands of pieces. Matt almost got consumed by the fire, and some of the shrapnel dug deep into Matt's leg and caused it to bleed like crazy.  
  
After a few more steps, Matt stopped at his tracks and screamed from how the shrapnel tore his muscles from within. The warlord of the Ishidas leaned against the rail and let out a swear by the time the metal inside stopped tearing his thigh up any further.  
  
When he opened his eyes and turned to the right, he saw the clans far below surrounding two warriors and cheering for their champions. The warriors were fighting like never before, constantly changing roles of attacker and defender. Matt didn't catch on to who was wearing the bladed black armor far below, but he recognized the winged warrior facing the armored one.  
  
"T.K. you idiot. If you only did your job, none of this shit would be happening! You have disrespected me for the last time..." Matt slowly opened his jacket and whipped out his .45 caliber. With cold eyes on T.K., Matt aimed his gun at the back of T.K.' s skull far below.   
  
"I'm going to end this bullshit once and for all, and all it's gonna take is a bullet! Give my regards to dad, Takeru. It's a shame you'll have to die the same way he did..."  
  
Slowly, Matt Ishida started to squeeze the trigger.  
  
All of a sudden, a gut-wrenching pain sunk its fangs into Matt Ishida's chest. Losing his aim, Matt felt warm blood slowly pouring out of his mouth and down his shirt. Shaking violently from the pain, Matt looked down at where the pain was coming from. What he saw was the the tip of a sword sticking right out of his chest. In a flash, the sword slipped right out of his body, causing even greater pain to erupt from within.  
  
Matt let out a blood-curdling scream from his release from the blade and staggered to a nearby wall. When he shut his eyes from the pain, Matt leaned his bloodsoaked back against the wall, trying his best to stay in the physical world. Slowly, Matt opened his eyes to see who made a crack in his gate of life. When he got a good look at him, his very soul crumbled with fear.  
  
Standing in front of Matt was his arch-rival, Tai Kamiya, armed with a red-handled, bloodsoaked katana. Staring coldly at his mortal enemy, a tear came down Tai's eye and rolled down his cheek.  
  
"I've waited a long time for this, Matt..." Tai whispered. Not bothering to wipe his tear away, Tai's right grip on the sword started to tighten. Feeling his soul getting torn away from his body, Matt slowly tried to aim his gun at Tai and once and for all end the feud. Matt coughed out more blood as his gun was about to aim right for Tai's heart.  
  
In a blink of an eye, Tai rammed his right fist into Matt's jaw. Blood splashed out of Matt's mouth and splattered all over the wall he was leaning on. When Matt felt Tai's fatal blow, Matt's body collapsed before the victor. Matt Ishida laid in his pool of blood, soaking his clothes and his face. More tears streamed down Tai's eyes as he stared at the corpse with a face of stone. Tai said very slowly:  
  
"That was for Sora, you murderous son of a bitch."  
  
  
---------------------  
  
  
T.K. and Ken stood before one another, beatened and bloodied up from the their duel. T.K. felt his blood trickling down the edge of his mouth and he felt his ribs a bit sore from letting Ken ram his fist into it. Ken felt some blood trickling down his nose from underneath his helmet, and his breast plate had some dents from T.K.'s strikes. Both warriors were breathing heavily, but neither one was willing to give up.  
  
Ken started to form a hidden smile.  
  
"/Hey, Angel of Death, do you know what's stronger than flesh?/"  
  
"It's the fighting spirit," T.K. whispered.  
  
"/Wrong. It's STEEL!/" In a flash, Ken whipped out his trusty katana, Masamune. As he raised his sword high in the air, the sword transformed from a beautiful blade to a monstrous sword of pure destruction, looking just as hideous as its wielder. Stretching his wings, Ken flew right for T.K. with Masamune resting well in his hands. Ken swung the sword at T.K., going for the head. Quickly, T.K. flew away from Ken's attack. With eyes eager for blood, Ken flew after him. T.K. did his best to evade Ken and fly through any tight spots, but all Ken did was slice his way through the obstacles. Having his wasp wings beat faster, Ken caught up with T.K. Flying above T.K., Ken swung his sword down on him. With evasive action, T.K. flew downwards and avoided the blade, but in doing so he crashed right back to the ground, right back into the ring.  
  
Ken landed lightly right in front of T.K., towering over the vulnerable Angel of Death. With a grin, tested the sharpness of his blade with his thumb. As he raised his sword over his head to end T.K.'s life, pointing his blade right for T.K.'s heart, the Ishidas chanted Ken's name. The sword started to glow hot-orange, feeling the dark powers from Ken strengthening it.  
  
**"/SPIKING STRIKE!!/"** Ken shouted. The sword was heading for T.K., coming at frightening speed. Having no way to defend it and feeling the fear get the best of him, T.K. shielded his eyes with his arms. T.K. heard the sword hit something metallic. Soon after, he heard Ken's sword eating through flesh.  
  
But it wasn't _his_ flesh the sword was eating through.  
  
Confused, T.K. took his arms off his face to see what happened. Before his eyes was Kari, impaled by Ken's sword. Feeling blood pouring out of her mouth, Kari looked into T.K.'s eyes with tears streaming down her cheeks. The huge pipe she used to deflect Ken's attack slipped out of her hands.  
  
"I'm sorry... I couldn't let him win. I love you, T.K... I-"  
  
Letting out a snort, Ken swung his sword to the side and flung Kari off his blade. T.K.'s very heart felt a sudden chill from watching how Ken mutilated his beloved. Grinning, Ken set his attention back on T.K.  
  
"/Don't worry, T.K. You'll be joining her soon enough,/" Ken said nicely.  
  
With a trembling jaw, T.K.'s tearful eyes saw Kari lying motionless on the ground. Bleeding horribly, Kari closed her eyes peacefully after she set her lovely eyes on her love one last time. Slowly, Kari smiled to herself.  
  
"Ai.... ai shiteru... Takeru..."  
  
Those 3 words were her last.  
  
**"_KAARIIIIIII !! NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!_"**  
  
  
  
... to be continued.  
  
  
  



	18. Feel My Pain...

Falling to his knees and curling like a ball, T.K.'s very soul felt as empty and cold as a ghosttown. The Angel of Death closed his eyes, covered his face and wept, feeling as though his heart was in the hands of an ice demon that relished pain and sorrow. Streams of tears dripped out of his helmet and dripped to the ground.   
  
T.K. slowly took his hands off his face and opened his eyes when he heard a very sinister laugh. He saw the monstrous black knight towering over T.K., laughing his heart out and resting his sword in his shoulder.  
  
"/Aaawwww, what's the matter? Are you crying like a baby over that girl? How about this: I'll give you a half hour to fuck her. I think her body's still warm enough for that. Go ahead and have some fun with your girlfriend's body before I kill you.../"  
  
Ken let out an even more frightening laugh than the last time, having it echo throughout the factory. The Kamiyas started to back away from the King of Blades, realizing the true level of his evil. Even the Ishidas started to back away from the evil assassin.  
  
"What kind of a... monster is he??" Joe asked himself.  
  
The Angel of Death remained silent, on his knees and staring down at the ground in defeat.  
  
Ken heard a battle cry coming from right behind him. When he whipped his head to where the battle-cry was coming from, he saw Tai Kamiya running right for him, leaving behind a trail of tears and drawing out his katana in a flash.  
  
"THAT WAS MY SISTER, YA BASTARD!!!" Tai screamed. Tai leaped towards his sister's killer and swung is blade right down for Ken's head. Ken blocked the sword with his own sword with ease. Refusing to give up the rage, Tai continued his onslaught on the towering monster, having every slash strong enough to slice a human's body in half. Smiling to himself and backing away from Tai, Ken parried every attack.  
  
"FIGHT ME, YOU COWARD!!" Tai screamed. Tai spun a 360 degrees and swung his katana with all his might for Ken's head, hoping he could have Ken's head roll off his shoulders. Letting out a sigh, Ken blocked Tai's blade with his fingers.  
  
"/Don't tell me this is the best the Warlord of the Kamiyas can do. Your energy level is absolutely no match for mine/," Ken said. When Ken faced his palm at Tai's face, Ken knocked Tai away with his inner power. Izzy and Takato caught Tai before he ended up making a big thud on the ground. Tai set his enraged eyes on Ken, hoping he could go another round.  
  
"/And now to finish off the Angel of-/"  
  
With eyes down to the ground, T.K. started to growl and tighten his fists, almost to the point of making his palms bleed from his fingernails. When he slowly got up, he set his angry eyes on the King of Blades, grinding his teeth and growling even louder. His muscles started to bulge even more and the veins on his arms and legs popped up larger, showing the fury growing out of control like wildfire. A shining light started to illuminate from his very heart, shining like the North Star. The light grew larger, making him similar to a being of light.  
  
No longer able to contain the rage, T.K. let out a menacing scream for revenge, piercing every human ear near and far. The Angel of Death's very scream was completely surpassed by the enormous power from within him. A bright light exploded out of T.K.'s very body, looking as beautiful and menacing as a little nova. The force within him was so powerful, every person nearby the Angel of Death were launched off their feet and were almost knocked right out of the factory. T.K.'s surroundings disintegrated into dust, every piece of metal too weak to resist his wrath.  
  
The King of Blades shielded his face with his arms forming an "X", feeling it was too late to dodge T.K.'s inner power. The huge power collided into Ken like a mighty tsunami, driving him far away from his nemesis. Feeling his arms burning from within, Ken's heels dug into the floor as he tried to hold his ground.  
  
Finally, the light died down. Ken took his arms off his face when he felt that T.K.'s powers died down. What he saw next made his very heart sink. Almost 1/3 of the Steel Factory's interior was torn apart, looking as though 10 tons of plastic explosives took a big chunk out of it. The Kamiyas and the Ishidas that got knocked away from the power helped their fellow clansmen out of the rubble.  
  
In the center of the annihilation was the Angel of Death, standing with incredible vigor. His entire body was shining off a beautiful white light, and his lovely wings let out a shimmer of gold. He almost resembled a Seraph, the most powerful of all angels.  
  
Right next to the mighty T.K. was Kari's body. To T.K.'s surprise, Kari's body was unharmed by his inner strength. Kneeling to Kari's body, T.K. slowly caressed her face and fixed her hair when it was covering her eyes. Lying in her pool of blood, Kari's eyes were closed and her smile showed her to be in total peace. Then, through his silver helmet, T.K. saw the King of Blades standing 40 feet away from him, trembling before his very presence.  
  
"/.... what have I done..../"  
  
T.K.'s mighty fist smashed right into Ken's face. The punch was so devestating that Ken's helmet shattered into pieces. Ken got launched by the fist and skidded into the ground, feeling like he got hit by a runaway bullet train. While he skidded, Ken lost his sword. His jaw trembled with fear when his skidding came to a halt.  
  
"/How... how can he move so damn fast? He was so far away. And his power.../" Not being given any time to recooperate, the Angel of Death phased in front of Ken and launched Ken into the air with an uppercut. As he watched him helplessly spiral into the air, T.K. spread his golden wings and flew right for his prey.  
  
When he caught up with the weakened King of Blades, T.K. unleashed a horrible barrage of strikes on him, pulverizing him with fantastic speed and power using fists of fury and kicks of frenzy. Everyone was awestruck from how the Angel of Death can unleash such incredible wrath in mid-air, spiraling all around Ken and bashing away all he could.  
  
Ken had no way of whatsoever to defend himself, being as defenseless a a punching bag.  
  
After throwing 100 more kicks into Ken's bloodied face in 5 seconds, T.K. grabbed Ken by the neck and stared into the eyes of his helpless victim. Ken's arms dangled by his sides as he weakly looked into the face of his enemy. Curling one finger at a time, T.K. made a right fist and aimed it right for Ken's face.  
  
"YOU..."  
  
T.K. smashed his fist into Ken's cheek.  
  
"...WILL..."  
  
He smashed it into Ken's nose.  
  
"... NEVER..."  
  
T.K. rammed his fist into Ken's nose again.  
  
"... BE..."  
  
Blue lightning surged right through his right arm, building up greater and greater.  
  
"... FORGIVEN!!!!"  
  
T.K. threw a right hook into Ken's skull, leaving a trail of electricity along the movement of his fist. Feeling T.K.'s deadly blow crack his skull, Ken crashed back to the bottom of the Factory like a meteor at the speed of Mach 2. The clans felt the awesome impact, feeling as though Tokyo nearby was being hit by an earthquake.  
  
T.K. wasn't finished.  
  
The Angel of Death's scream of anguish and rage spiraled out of control and merged into one, diving into his heart like a ghost and driving his power to the ultimate level. T.K. raised his fists high into the air and stared coldly at the helpless King of Blades far below. His golden wings shined brighter than 20 suns put altogether, leaving not a single shadow unharmed. The entire factory started to rock, feeling as though the earth was about to swallow it.  
  
The clans stood there frozen, amazed by the Angel of Death's amazing feats. Tai knew what T.K was about to do, and only one word popped right into his mind:  
  
RUN!!!  
  
Quickly, Tai got the attention of his clansmen.  
  
"WE GOT TO GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE!! IF WE STICK AROUND, WE'RE GONNA BE REDUCED TO BARBEQUE! MOVE YOUR ASSES, PEOPLE!!" Tai commanded. Sheathing his katana, Tai and later on the entire Kamiya Clan ran for the nearest exit and got out of the factory. Not wanting to see what's about to happen, the surviving Ishidas did the same.  
  
Izzy and the rest of the Kamiyas stopped at their tracks by the time they were 40 yards away the Factory. To their surprise, Tai was still running.  
  
"Hey, Tai! Where are you going? We're already out of harm's way!" Izzy shouted.  
  
Tai stopped at his tracks and made a 180.  
  
"Oh NO, we're not! Keep running!! It's gonna be BIG!!!" Tai screamed. Tai continued to run, not wanting to be part of the final blow. Feeling all the land around the Factory rocking as well, Izzy and the Kamiyas followed Tai's orders. The Ishidas weren't far behind, and they didn't want to feel T.K.'s wrath either.  
  
Back in the factory, the shining Angel of Death felt the power surging from his body and wings right to his fists. His fists over his head let out a beautiful shining, blue light as he was finally ready to destroy the nightmare. With a face of sorrow, he turned his eyes to Kari's body.  
  
"This is for you, my love..."  
  
T.K. couldn't contain the power any longer. With tears of blood, T.K. felt that the time has come.  
  
"HAND OF FATE!!!!!!!!!" With one last scream, T.K. whipped his fists at Ken far below and blasted a bright-blue, poweful beam at the King of Blades. The beam was so enormous that it was impossible to dodge the attack in time.  
  
Ken screamed for his life as he watched the Hand of Fate head right for him like a mighty phoenix gone renegade. In a split second, his scream was completely silenced.  
  
  
----------------  
  
  
One hundred yards away from the Factory, Tai and everyone else stopped at their tracks and finally felt that they were in the safety zone. Izzy and Takato noticed some bright light cracking out of the Factory. When Tai noticed, his eyes widened.  
  
"EVERYBODY, GET DOW-"  
  
The powerful beam ripped right out of the Musashi Steel Factory! The clans were knocked to the ground as they felt the beam's mighty, unseen turbulence. As the seconds passed by, the beam finally died down.  
  
(Thank God this factory was far away from the city.) Tai thought to himself.  
  
Nobody was prepared to see what was before their eyes. The entire left-half of the Musashi Steel Factory was wiped out. Nothing was left from where the left-half once stood: no steel cauldrons, no catwalks, no stairways, no bodies, nothing!  
  
"My gosh. How can one human have so much power? Are... are they still alive?" Takato asked himself.  
  
"I would do anything to have such power..." Lee whispered to himself.  
  
  
---------------  
  
  
Within what's left of the Factory, a blonde-haired, young man in black knelt to the ground and cradled the body of the beautiful musician once known as Kari Kamiya. Trembling, he felt his tears roll down his face and drip onto Kari's lovely face.  
  
"Kari... oh, Kari, why?"  
  
T.K. clutched Kari's body closer to his body and buried his face next to Kari's. He sobbed, knowing that his true love was forever gone.  
  
"Why? WHY DID YOU HAVE TO DIE??" T.K. cried. To numb the pain within, all that was on his mind was Kari, his only love. Not wanting the dreadful pain of loss to get the best of him, he focused only on Kari and how she forever changed his life. Listening to her lovely song, tasting her sweet lips, giving up his virginity to a lovely woman with unequal beauty both on outside and the inside.  
  
All that has been put out like a candlelight.  
  
When his sobbing started to reside, he noticed a shadow towering over both himself and his beloved. T.K. didn't have to see who was behind them.  
  
"What do you want, Shard?" T.K. asked coldly.  
  
"Do you really believe that Kari's gone?" T.K.'s eyes widened and quickly set on Shard.  
  
"What are you talking about? I saw the sword right through her!" T.K. said.  
  
"You haven't seen everything, when you shielded your eyes, Angel of Death. Do you really think you're the only one who has ascended to the next level?" Shard asked.  
  
T.K. felt his pulse pounding harder.  
  
"I was watching the battle the whole time, since I wasn't allowed to interfere. When Kari blocked Ken's attack with a steel pipe, she transformed her body into a mystical shield to protect both you and herself. Even though she has ascended, she hasn't ascended to the same level of power as you have. She may have absorbed Ken's physical attack, but she couldn't protect herself from the dark, mystical powers.  
  
She's not dead. She's asleep, and she needs to be awakened by her true love."  
  
With a trembling jaw, T.K. started to smile, feeling his anguish slipping away.  
  
"Shard, how do I wake her up?" T.K. asked. Shard chuckled to himself.  
  
"With love, of course. Love is the greatest force in the universe, T.K. Takaishi. You can make guns, bombs, missiles, anything that can annihilate whatever's in your path. But no instrument of destruction can ever match the ultimate weapon of love..."  
  
"And what weapon is that?" T.K. asked.  
  
"...a kiss..." Shard's very news sliced right through T.K.'s anguish like a hot-tempered sword. Taking Shard's words seriously, T.K. slowly closed his eyes and pulled Kari's body even closer. T.K. leaned down to Kari's lips and gently kissed her there. Her lips were almost ice-cold, feeling as though she just came from the arctic.  
  
Suddenly, Kari's lips started to feel warm...  
  
Kari slowly brushed her lips with T.K.'s, enjoying her mate's sweet taste. Kari embraced T.K. and kissed him with more passion, feeling as though she hasn't seen him in hundreds of years. Moaning lightly while kissing him, Kari opened T.K. lips with her own and slid her wet tongue into his mouth to let their tongues slither around each other. They slowly released each other's kiss, leaving a long spit-line in-between them.  
  
"...Hikari..."  
  
"...Takeru..."   
  
Not wanting the moment to go away, T.K. and Kari embraced each other, feeling each other's heartbeat. The warm beautiful feeling blossomed through their bodies as they continued to feel each other's wonderful touch. T.K. and Kari set their eyes of joy on the enigmatic man.  
  
"Thank you, Shard. Thank you for helping us!" Kari said.  
  
"How... how did you know how to bring Kari back? How do you know what I'm capable of doing?" T.K. asked.  
  
Shard started to float away from the couple.  
  
"That is another story, Takeru Takaishi. After what you've done, no longer will you be known as the Angel of Death. From now on, you shall be known as...  
  
... The Angel of Hope..."  
  
The shadows consumed Shard, taking him away from the torn-up factory.  
  
  
-------------------  
  
  
"BIG BROTHER!" When T.K. and Kari finally got out of the Factory, Kari leaped into Tai's arms. Finding it too good to be true that she's alive, Tai lifted Kari off her feet and swung his little sister around. Tai and Kari laughed with joy, feeling like their mischievous selves when they were just children. T.K., Izzy and the Kamiyas felt warm all over when they watched the true Kamiyas filled with life like never before.  
  
(I'm coming home, Mimi! Just like I promised...)  
  
Suddenly, their laugh was interrupted when someone cocked the hammer for his .45 caliber silver handgun.  
  
To their surprise, they saw Lee aiming his handgun right for Tai's head. Tai gently placed Kari back down, with cold eyes on Lee. T.K. quickly stood by his beloved, willing to use his own body as a shield for Kari. T.K. wanted to stop him, but he was too weak to do anything after that last attack on the King of Blades.  
  
"Now that Matt's out of the picture, I and I alone will have the joy of killing the Kamiya Warlord! And I will ascend to power! Time to day 'sayonara'..."  
  
A gunshot ringed right through the night.  
  
Blood trickled out of Lee's heart, staining his shirt horribly. Feeling the light within himself die out, Lee collapsed to the dirt. The Kamiyas saw who pulled the trigger.  
  
It was Joe.  
  
"This feud is over." Joe turned to all the Ishidas.  
  
"No longer will the Kamiya Clan be harmed. And no longer will the Ishidas exist for its heartless methods that have been used for years! From now on, we are known as the Kido Clan! Anyone who disagrees with my orders will answer to me," Joe said with authority. Knowing that their once leader is gone, the now Kido Clan bowed their heads to Joe, their new Warlord. Joe beckoned a beautiful red-haired girl to stand by his side.  
  
"Ruki, you're my right-hand now," Joe commanded.  
  
"Of course, Mr. Kido," Ruki responded obediently.  
  
Without anything else to say, Joe and his clan walked off and left the Kamiyas alone, leaving no words to say. Completely exhausted, the Kamiyas went the opposite way and headed back to the Kamiya Estate. All were more than willing to let T.K. come along.  
  
In Tai's limo, Kari rested peacefully, letting her head rest on T.K.'s shoulder. Seeing that Tai and Izzy were completely exhausted as well, T.K. gazed out the window and watched how fast the limo passed down the streets back to Tokyo. T.K., the Angel of Hope, had no idea what the future has in store for him. All he could do was just watch the street-lights pass by and stay on-course, letting fate take control of his life for once. Smiling, T.K. brushed his fingers through her lovely hair and did his best not wake up his beloved angel.  
  
"For you, Kari, I will never take another life ever again...."  
  
T.K. had no idea as to how he transformed into the Angel of Hope. And what's to become of Kari? Is Kari destined to follow T.K.'s footsteps and ascend?  
  
And what does Shard have in store for the former assassin?  
  
That's another story.  
  
  
  
~~THE END~~  
  
  
  
  
I'm so happy that all you readers love my story! Since many of you love it so much, I'm going to concentrate on making this story a novel! Don't expect my new version to have the same characters and the same plot as the one you just read here. Not only am I going to make some changes in the plot, but I'm also going to make it far more action-packed than before! I hope you'll love my original version when it gets published! Ja ne!  
  
Oh, another thing: This story is strictly my property! If anybody dares to plaigarize my story, he/she will be asking for a lot of legal trouble!! 


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